Couples Share Nearly Half Of Their Oral Bacteria Through Close Contact, Research Shows
A new study reveals that sharing a home has a major influence on our oral and gut microbiomes, with potential consequences for our health
People who live in the same home share many of the same bacteria in their mouths and guts, according to a new study published in Cell Press Blue. The research indicates that couples share nearly half of their oral bacteria through close contact, demonstrating how domestic partnerships can shape the microscopic communities living inside us.[1][2]
First author Vitor Heidrich, a computational biologist at the University of Trento in Italy, commented that who we decide to share our homes with can have a huge influence on our microbiomes. Heidrich noted that this shared microbial environment has potential consequences for our health.[1][2]
