Having lots of different kinds of bacteria and microorganisms in your microbiome (gut!) is considered good for your health, but it’s all about the right mix and a healthy balance.
Excite your senses and make your very own unique microbiome using a range of textured items designed to be squeezed and squished.
To make your own microbiome you will need:
- A little ziplock bag (your gut)
- A squirt of bubble bath (tummy slime)
- A sprinkle of glitter (house dust)
- 2x small pom poms (the bacteria Bacteroides fragilis)
- 1x strand of Spaghetti (the bacteria Bifidobacterium animalis)
- 1 x Kidney Beans (the bacteria Enterococcus faecalis)
- 3 x Chickpeas (the bacteria Escherichia coli)
- 2x Googly eyes (the probiotic – Lactobacillus)
- 1 x Coloured craft stick (the Probiotic Bifidobacterium)
Everyone’s microbiomes are completely unique and will have their own individual mix of bugs – so you can replace these bacteria and probiotic ingredients with fun alternatives in your house.
Method:
Pop it all in your gut (your little bag), zip it up tightly (make sure you don’t have any messy leaks!) and mix and mush away. You have now created your very own magical microbiome!
Real life research: The ORIGINS Project
Learning about the microbiome is important in ensuring we find ways to help mums, dads and babies to balance their unhealthy systems and avoid getting sick or developing non-communicable diseases such as obesity, heart disease, allergies and poor mental health.
The ultimate goal of the ORIGINS Project, a partnership between Telethon Kids Institute and the Joondalup Health Campus is to reduce the rising outbreak of non-communicable diseases as early as in the womb.
By looking at the microbiomes of babies and mums and dads and collecting and studying samples such as poo, urine, hair and saliva, and seeing how it changes over five years, ORIGINS can determine how this affects the child’s future health and can help uncover when and why these non-communicable diseases develop.