Manipulating the Microbiota with Dr. Michael Ruscio

July 16, 2015

Functional Medicine expert Dr. Michael Ruscio lectures to doctors and students nationwide and runs a private practice in California. I first became aware of his research through a series of excellent Robb Wolf podcasts, here, here and here.

Dr. Ruscio now hosts this podcast that I've been enjoying tremendously. 

Over the past few weeks, I've been developing a tool to help people better understand their µBiome test results and open up the possibility of automating analysis of the bacteria that reside in our guts. This type of microbiota testing goes beyond the core of what I do at Nourish Balance Thrive, and I was keen to get Dr. Ruscio on to discuss its potential clinical relevance.

Dr. Ruscio is open to the idea of testing and manipulating the microbiota but feels that the association between test results and health outcomes are not yet understood. Furthermore, Dr. Ruscio remains skeptical that we can "custom manipulate the microbiota" to produce a health outcome.

I also couldn't resist the opportunity to ask Dr. Ruscio about his thoughts on treatment for small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). 

Have you done the µBiome test? Did you find any bifidobacteria? Have you been able to manipulate the results using probiotics and prebiotics?  Was there any association with your health or athletic performance? Let me know in the comments section below.