Chances are, you already know about the diverse mix of microorganisms called the gut microbiota living in your digestive tract. And you may also know that these microorganisms affect your health in different ways.

Years ago, one of the first questions scientists came together answer in the field of microbiome science was: what makes a microbiome “healthy”? But as the research progressed, scientists found the gut microbiomes of healthy adults turned out to be far more varied than expected.

Overview of the definitions of microbiome and microbiota.