Pediatrics & Therapeutics
Open Access
ISSN: 2161-0665
ISSN: 2161-0665
Khalaf Hussein Hasan
University of Duhok, Iraq
Posters & Accepted Abstracts: Pediatr Ther
The role of gut/gut microbiota in the health and wellbeing is a hot topic for ongoing researches. How does gut health in infancy influence overall health in later life and how do our resident gut microbes affect health, immunity and mental wellbeing? Gut health in early life is a central for overall growth, development and wellbeing in later life. Hippocrates (360-470 BC) said that all diseases begin in the gut. The gastrointestinal tract is an organ system responsible for consuming and digesting food, absorbing nutrients and expelling waste thereafter. It starts with the mouth and end with anus. It contains 70-80% of the body�??s immune system, hundred million of neurons, 95% of the body�??s serotonin and about 100 trillion bacteria. The gut has three main functions: Absorption and digestion, gut immune function and gut-brain crosstalk. The gut contain about 100 trillion bacteria (approximately 2 kg body weight), one thousand different bacterial species, bacteria cells constitute 90% of total number of cells in human body (remaining 10% are human cells) and the human microbiome are 1,000,000 + genes vs. only 23,000 human genes and the bacterial composition is unique per individual and influenced by host genotype. Many factors affect the gut microbiota composition including: Diet, life style, hygiene, stress, environment and the use of antibiotics. There is a bidirectional signaling between the gastrointestinal tract and the brain; the brain influences gut microbiota and gut microbiota influences brain, mood and behavior. Healthy gut microbiota is essential for normal gut physiology, appropriate signally along gut-brain axis and maintenance of good health.
E-mail: dr_gargary@yahoo.com