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Why Digestive Health is Important

Your digestive system breaks down foods and liquids into their chemical components—carbohydrates, fats, proteins—so that the body can absorb nutrients, use energy, and build or repair cells. Your digestive health impacts your immune system, your mental health, and your overall well-being. When you have a healthy digestive system, your gastrointestinal tract has a good balance of good bacteria and is able to properly digest and absorb nutrients. But when there is an imbalance in your digestive system, it may trigger unwanted gastrointestinal symptoms, like diarrhea and more.1

Common Infectious Gastroenteritis Diseases

One important way to maintain digestive health is to avoid gastrointestinal infections to the best of your ability. Several bacteria, viruses, and parasites can cause gastrointestinal infections. Below are just four of these common pathogens that are infamous for causing unpleasant infectious gastroenteritis.

 

  • Escherichia coli - According to the Centers for Disease Control, E. coli bacteria are found in the environment, foods, and intestines of people and animals. E. coli are a large and diverse group of bacteria. Although most strains of E. coli are harmless, others can cause illness. Some kinds of E. coli can cause diarrhea, while others cause urinary tract infections, respiratory illness and pneumonia, and other illnesses.
  • Clostridioides difficile - This bacterium causes diarrhea and colitis (an inflammation of the colon). According to the Centers for Disease Control it's estimated to cause half a million infections in the United States per year. To keep from getting C. difficile, wash your hands with soap and water every time you use the bathroom and always before you eat. Always wash with soap in the shower.
  • Norovirus - Norovirus is a very contagious virus that causes vomiting and diarrhea. Anyone can get infected and sick with norovirus. Most people get norovirus from having direct contact with an infected person, consuming contaminated food and water, and touching contaminated surfaces and then putting unwashed hands in their mouth.
  • Salmonella - Salmonellosis is an infection with a bacteria called Salmonella, which lives in the intestinal tracts of animals, including birds. Salmonella is usually transmitted to humans by eating foods contaminated with animal feces. Every year, approximately 40,000 cases of salmonellosis are reported in the United States.2

 

The Effect of Antibiotics on the Microbiome

Antibiotics and other antimicrobial therapies can also impact digestive health. Antimicrobial drugs help treat infections by killing the germs making us sick, but they can also disrupt our microbiomes by wiping out healthy bacteria.3

Antibiotic-induced changes in microbial composition can have a negative impact on host health including reduced microbial diversity, changes in functional attributes of the microbiota, formation, and selection of antibiotic-resistant strains making hosts more susceptible to infection.4

The Role of Timely, Comprehensive Infectious Disease Diagnostics

When it comes to gastrointestinal infections, diagnostics are crucial for identifying causative pathogens and helping avoid unnecessary antimicrobials. However, traditional testing methods are slow, labor intensive, and often fail to reveal infectious causes.5 As a result, clinicians often must make patient-management decisions without laboratory results.

The BIOFIRE® syndromic approach can help by testing for multiple probable pathogens in one quick and accurate PCR test. The FDA-cleared BIOFIRE® FILMARRAY® Gastrointestinal (GI) Panel tests for 22 of the most common pathogens associated with gastroenteritis—all from one patient sample, with results available in about one hour.

Fast, accurate, and comprehensive results from the BIOFIRE GI Panel can help:

  • Reduce antibiotic use6
  • Reduce time to antimicrobial therapy7
  • Lead to more targeted therapy7
  • Reduce downstream procedures such as endoscopies and abdominal imaging.6

Learn More about Gastrointestinal Panel Testing:

References:

  1. MD Anderson Cancer Center. How to Improve Your Gut Health. Accessed 08 May 2023. Retrieved from: https://www.mdanderson.org/cancerwise/how-to-improve-your-gut-health.h00-159538956.html
  2. Minnesota Department of Health. Causes and Symptoms of Salmonellosis. Accessed 08 May 2023. Retrieved from: https://www.health.state.mn.us/diseases/salmonellosis/basics.html
  3. Yoon MY, Yoon SS. Yonsei Med J 2018 Jan;59(1):4-12.
  4. Patangia DV, et al. MicrobiologyOpen. 2022;11, e1260.
  5. Riddle MS, DuPont HL, Connor BA. Am J Gastroenterol. 2016; 111:602-622.
  6. Axelrad JE, et al. 2019; 27;57(3). e01775-18.
  7. Cybulski R, et al. Clinical Infectious Diseases, 2018; ciy357.

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