Does leaving foraging change the gut microbiome?
Among 54 Himalayan people, gut microbiomes tracked farming history: Chepang foragers looked most traditional, Tharu farmers closer to Americans, and recently transitioned Raute/Raji sat in between.
Source
Gut microbiome transition across a lifestyle gradient in Himalaya
Study at a glance
- Design
- Cross-sectional — Stool 16S comparison of four Himalayan groups along a foraging-to-farming gradient plus 10 European-descent Americans
- N
- N=54 · 54 Himalayan participants (Chepang 14, Raji 9, Raute 11, Tharu 20); plus 10 Americans (N=64 in some genus analyses)
- Population
- Rural Himalayan Chepang, Raji, Raute, and Tharu communities compared with Americans of European descent
- Outcome
- Gut bacterial community composition and how agricultural dependence tracks divergence from a foraging microbiome
Structured fields used in claim comparison tables when every cited study has a complete layer.
What they did
Collected stool from Chepang (still foraging-like), Raute and Raji (farming 30–40 years), Tharu (farming 250–300 years), plus 10 Americans, then related diet/environment to 16S community composition.
What they found
Lifestyle differences correlated strongly with microbial variation. All four Himalayan groups differed from Americans. Chepang had forager-associated taxa; farming groups were more American-like. Raute/Raji were intermediate, so divergence can happen in one generation.
The limits
What it doesn't show
Cross-sectional stool snapshots cannot prove farming caused the shift, and N is modest; genetics, geography, and unmeasured diet still confound.
Key terms
- Chepang
- Himalayan group retaining many foraging lifestyle features (N=14).
- Tharu
- Former foragers who began farming 250–300 years ago (N=20).
- Raute and Raji
- Groups that transitioned from foraging to subsistence farming 30–40 years ago.
- 16S rRNA profiling
- Sequencing method used to describe stool bacterial composition.
- Foraging microbiome
- Community profile associated with hunter-gatherer/forager lifestyles worldwide.
- Industrialization
- Further lifestyle shift; American microbiomes were distinct from all Himalayan groups.
Flashcards
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Quiz yourself
Himalayan N was about:
Common questions
How many Himalayan participants?
54 (Chepang 14, Raji 9, Raute 11, Tharu 20).
Who still forages most?
The Chepang retain many foraging lifestyle aspects.
Can the microbiome shift in one generation?
Raute and Raji were intermediate, suggesting yes.
How did Americans compare?
All four Himalayan microbiomes were distinct from Americans.
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