From Lynton Cox, Stamford, Lincolnshire, UK
Being a microbiologist, I get tetchy about some claims made of the colonic microbiome. I concede its importance in young infants and possibly in obesity. Undoubtedly, some evolutionary adaptations have led to many interactions with it. But calling these critical or of prime importance is somewhat overdoing it, in my opinion (7 October, p 30).
The “elephant in the room” is a whole cohort of many thousands of people, such as myself, who have had their colon removed through total colectomy with ileostomy – and live happy and fulfilled lives of normal span without ill effects. Perhaps more could be learned from those in whom the colonic microbiome is absent than from those in whom it is present. I have seen no mention of this negative control group anywhere.
