What is the microbiota?

The micro-organisms of the digestive tract, in a few lines.

The gut microbiota is the whole set of micro-organisms (mostly bacteria, but also yeasts, viruses…) living in your digestive tract — tens of trillions of them, hundreds of different species, a composition unique to each person.

These microbes are not stowaways: they digest what your enzymes cannot break down (fibers in particular) and in return produce compounds useful to your body.