Gut Microbiome – Dale R. Pfost, PhD, Director and Cofounder, Microbiome Therapeutics – The Microbiome, Gut to Brain Connections, Probiotics & Prebiotics

Dale R. Pfost, PhD, Director and Cofounder, Microbiome Therapeutics, delivers an interesting overview of microbiome therapeutics, prediabetes treatment, and more.

Dr. Pfost has more than 25 years of solid leadership experience in the biotechnology industry. He has held many important executive positions at numerous respected companies, and was the Chief Executive of six biotechnology companies, most recently as the founding CEO of MicroBiome Therapeutics. Dr. Pfost earned a BS degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara and his PhD in physics from Brown University.

Dr. Pfost explains the premise of his company, Microbiome Therapeutics. As he states, the field of the microbiome encompasses a wide range of human health issues. With the increase in popularity of probiotic foods, clearly there is a strong interest in improving gut health through diet. Dr. Pfost states that through his 30 years of experience in the biotechnology field, the microbiome arena is one of the richest and broadest paradigm shifts in biotechnology and health food in particular.

The biotechnology expert talks in depth about cells, probiotics, and the processes that take place in our lower guts. He discusses caloric intake and "the loop" as he calls it, delving into the repopulation that takes place in the gut, using prebiotics, etc. to help the microbes produce short chain fatty acids. Continuing, he talks about the gut hormones, and the connection between the gut and brain. Dr. Pfost explains how it is important to increase the production of good things, such as short chain fatty acids, while decreasing the production of the bad things—such as hydrogen, gas, methane, and sulfide.

Dr. Pfost discusses intermittent fasting, in its various forms. And as he explains, you're fasting not only yourself but the microbes as well. He discusses the keto diet and other nutritional aspects of various diets, and how they impact microbes.

In this podcast:

How prebiotics could help microbes produce short chain fatty acids

The benefits of probiotic foods

The connections between the gut and brain