Intestinal Microbiome, Akkermansia muciniphila, and Medical Nutrition Therapy

The gastrointestinal microbiome has become a topic of great interest in medicine in recent years. Genomic sequencing can now be done at a fraction of the cost of a few years ago, and this has allowed for the development and compilation of an extensive amount of data related to the species diversity of the human gastrointestinal microbiome.1 Studies have demonstrated that the intestinal microbiome is sensitive to the composition of the diet.2 It is also recognized that the composition of the microbiome can be altered rapidly in response to dietary changes, stress, chemical exposure, and exercise.3 Both the expanded understanding of the composition of the human microbiome and the ability to measure it through genomic analysis of the stool have resulted in clinicians frequently wanting to know what actionable conclusions can be taken away from an analysis of the gastrointestinal microbiome.