How to build a healthy gut using the latest microbiome science | Dr Suzanne Devkota

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Dec 15, 2025

Dr. Suzanne Devkota is a microbiome researcher at Cedars-Sinai, specializing in gut health. In their discussion, she explains the importance of microbial diversity for gut resilience and the role of early life factors in microbiome development. Dr. Devkota clarifies the benefits and limitations of probiotics, prebiotics, and postbiotics. She shares fascinating insights on short-chain fatty acids, the connections between gut health and chronic diseases, and practical dietary tips to enhance microbiome health, emphasizing fiber-rich foods for optimal gut functionality.

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INSIGHT

Diversity Is A Core Marker Of Gut Health

A diverse gut microbiome reliably correlates with health across many chronic diseases.
Fewer species mean fewer functions and reduced resilience in the host-microbe ecosystem.

INSIGHT

Early Years Shape A Stable Core

The core adult microbiome forms across childhood and stabilizes by adolescence but remains responsive to chronic changes.
Long-term shifts require persistent diet, medication, or environmental changes.

ADVICE

Use Probiotics With A Clear Rationale

Only use probiotics when testing shows a clear, repeatable gap in specific taxa that the probiotic contains.
Otherwise focus on diet to maintain and numerically support existing microbes.

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In this episode I sit down again with microbiome researcher Dr Suzanne Devkota to explore what a healthy microbiome really is and how we can support it. We unpack diversity, early life programming, fibre and microbiota accessible carbohydrates (MACs), plus the genuine role of probiotics, prebiotics and postbiotics.

Suzanne also shares cutting edge research on short chain fatty acids, Akkermansia, inflammatory bowel disease, visceral fat and colon cancer, and helps separate solid science from the noise you see online.

What We Cover

What the microbiome is and how it differs along the digestive tract
Why diversity is a key marker of gut health and how chronic disease and diet affect it
Early life influences on the microbiome, from birth mode to first foods
The realities of stool testing, different methods, and how to interpret results with care
Probiotics versus prebiotics versus postbiotics, when each may or may not be useful
MAC rich foods, short chain fatty acids and why butyrate is so important for gut barrier integrity
The Akkermansia story, mucus, leaky gut and why focusing on one bug is misleading
New data on IBD, gut leakiness, bacteria in fat tissue and links to fibrosis and metabolism

I hope this conversation gives you a clearer, more grounded view of gut health and helps you focus on practical, sustainable steps that genuinely support your microbiome.

You can learn more from Dr Suzanne Devkota by following her on Instagram, or by visiting the Cedars-Sinai Human Microbiome Research Institute and the Devkota Lab.

Intro (00:00:00)
The Microbiome Conversation (00:01:16)
How Diversity Shapes Your Gut’s Health and Resilience (00:04:40)
The First Three Years That Shape a Lifetime (00:08:09)
What Microbiome Tests Can and Can’t Tell You (00:11:05)
Probiotics, Prebiotics, Postbiotics (00:18:05)
The Quiet Power of Short-Chain Fatty Acids (00:34:47)
The Fiber Controversy and What People Get Wrong (00:47:58)
How Daily Habits Quietly Reshape Your Microbiome (00:49:28)
Antibiotics, Resetting, and Rebuilding Your Gut (00:52:07)
How Early-Life Factors Imprint Your Gut for Decades (00:56:57)
Why Chronic Inflammation and IBD Connect Back to the Microbiome (01:03:14)
What We’re Learning About Colon Cancer and the Gut (01:16:13)
The Future of Microbiome Science and Personalized Gut Care (01:27:45)

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