Table of Contents
Introduction: The Convergence of the Microbiome, Nature, and Health 1
Chapter 1 The Magnificent Microbiome 4
The Microbiome Breakdown 6
Your Good Bugs 8
The Ecosystems Inside Us 9
The Oral Microbiome 11
The Gut Microbiome 12
What to Expect in this Book 15
Chapter 2 Dysbiosis, Infection, and Protection 17
Infection or Protection? 18
Dysbiosis 20
What Is "Normal" 22
Antibiotics 23
Chapter 3 A Tour of the Mouth 26
Location, Location, Location 27
What's In a Mouth? 28
The Ecosystems Inside Us 33
A Sea of Saliva 34
There's No Place Like Home 35
Chapter 4 Hail to the Immune System 37
An Epic Game of "Where's Waldo?" 38
The Innate Immune System and the Barrier 39
The Adaptive Immune System 40
Inflammation 45
Leaky Mouth 46
Immunity and the Mouth 48
Chapter 5 The Oral Microbiome 51
Oral Microbiota 52
Unique as a Snowflake 56
The Origins of Your Microbiome 57
Plaque and Biofilms 59
Bacteria and the Diet 61
How the Bugs Got Their Names 62
Chapter 6 Dysbiosis of the Oral Microbiome 68
The Microbial Ecology of Cavities 71
Sugar Is the Pits 75
Gingivitis and Periodontal Disease 75
Bad Breath 78
Toxic By-products of Bad Bacteria 79
Oral-Systemic Connection 80
Commensal Bacteria or Pathogen? 82
Chapter 7 Kissing Cousins: The Gut and the Mouth 85
The Almighty Gut 86
Similarities Between the Gut and the Mouth 89
Location Is Everything 90
Helicobacter Pylori 92
Inflammatory Bowel Disease 93
My Journey to the Mouth Began with Poop 96
Chapter 8 The Oral-Systemic Connection 99
The Link Between Oral and Heart Health 100
Bacteremia and "Leaky Mouth" 102
How Oral Pathogens Might Cause Heart Disease 103
Heart Health Benefits of the Oral Microbiome 106
Rheumatoid Arthritis 107
Diabetes 113
So, Now What Do I Do? 114
Chapter 9 Oral Microbiome Solutions 117
Diet 119
Nutrition 124
Dental Hygiene 126
Balancing Your Microbes 131
Lowering Inflammation 137
Healing Mouth Tissue 138
Boosting Your Immune System 140
Other Things to Consider When Optimizing Your Oral Microbiome 142
Finding an Integrative and Functional Healthcare Practitioner 143
Testing 144
Oral Microbiome Solutions for Oral, Gut, and Whole-Body Health 148
Chapter 10 Blind Luck 150
The Interface of Microbes, Immune Function, and Environment 152
Appendix 156
Notes 163
Index 174
Acknowledgments 183
About the author 184
