In the last decade, the advancement of science on the human Microbiota has developed at an increasingly fast rate, but with little public notice, the Human Gut Microbiota is now being used in the public realm through Gut Microbiota Sequencing. As such, we now refer to it as the Gut Microbiome Economy. A multitude of segments have emerged from this sector, which combine Biotech, Data Science, Personalised Nutrition and Digital Health Platforms that will help individuals understand and maximise the benefits associated with the trillions of microorganisms within their gut.
So, how is your gut microbiome shifting the world of wellness and health towards this emerging economy? More critically, what is personalised nutrition based on Gut Microbiome data?
What is the Microbiome Economy?
The Microbiome Economy consists of the rapidly developing market surrounding Gut Microbiome Sequencing, Analysis, Targeted nutrition and all products which can modulate Gut Microbiome from Probiotics, Prebiotics, to Precision Supplements and tailored diet plans.
Components of the Microbiome Economy include consumer testing companies, providing at-home sequencing kits; AI-driven nutritional platforms creating personalised diet plans; food and supplement Brands producing probiotic and prebiotic Strains and ingredients designed for specific microbial functions; healthcare providers utilising microbiome data to inform pre-emptive health management (preventative medicine) and publishing research and pharmaceutical/biotech partnerships looking for microbiome-based therapeutics.
The Microbiome Economy is not simply yet another fad or trend in health; it represents a paradigm shift in health Personalisation.
Why Gut Biome Sequencing Changed Everything
Traditional nutrition guidance is based on population averages. For example, most people are generally told that fibre is good for you, that sugar is not, and that eating protein will keep you from feeling hungry. But gut biome sequencing revealed a crucial insight:
When researchers began sequencing the gut microbiome of individuals, it was discovered that people respond differently to the same type of foods. Two people may eat the same meal but experience very different changes in blood sugar, inflammation, digestion, and energy. The primary factor affecting these changes is the composition of each person's gut microbiome.
With modern sequencing technologies (i.e., 16S rRNA and shotgun metagenomics), scientists can identify the species of microbes in an individual's gut, what metabolic functions they perform, and how balanced or diverse the individual's microbial ecosystem is. As a result, an individual can evaluate the balance and uniqueness of his/her microbiome and ascertain which metabolic pathways may be influenced by this evaluation (e.g., butyrate and bile acid production). Ultimately, these data serve as the foundation for providing individualised nutrition recommendations.
How Personalised Microbiome Nutrition Works
The Microbiome will be sequenced after identifying the sample. By developing Predictive or Customised Algorithms, Machine Learning Algorithms generate unique results for each person based on their Microbiome sequencing data. A typical personalised nutrition journey includes:
- Microbiome Sampling and Sequencing: Taking a small amount of stool from home, you will then ship the sample to an outside lab for DNA analysis. The DNA sequence of the sample provides information about the Microbiome's composition, as well as the active genes present in the sample that contribute to the overall functioning of the Microbiome.
- Health and Lifestyle Profiling: You complete an online questionnaire consisting of several questions, including aspects related to your diet, symptoms, sleep patterns, and stressors, as well as what your goals are (i.e. to reduce gas, support metabolic health, increase athletic performance).
- AI-Driven Interpretation: Algorithms integrate microbiome data + lifestyle data to produce: Personalised food recommendations. Foods to reduce temporarily. Beneficial bacteria that you lack. Inflammation scores, metabolic scores, diversity scores.
- Personalised Nutrition Plan: You receive item-level diet guidance, such as: “Increase polyphenol-rich foods to support Akkermansia muciniphila. “Reduce simple carbs to decrease overgrowth of gas-producing species.” “Add resistant starch to boost butyrate-producing microbes.”
- Precision Supplements (Optional): Some companies formulate custom probiotic or prebiotic blends tailored to your deficiencies.
- Longitudinal Tracking: Resequencing every 3–12 months monitors how your microbiome changes in response to diet, lifestyle, and supplements.
The Shift From General Wellness Advice To Targeted 'Post-biotic Therapy' and the controversy over the scientific validity of direct-consumer microbiome kits
In recent years, the health and wellness market has begun shifting away from generic advice, “eat healthy, exercise, take general probiotics”, toward more personalised, microbiome-based plans often dubbed as “post-biotic therapy.” The idea: by analysing an individual’s gut microbiome, one can
Tailor dietary changes, supplements or other interventions to rebalance one’s microbial ecosystem, and thus address inflammation, digestion, even mood, immune health, etc. Businesses promise “data-driven wellness,” claiming that a microbial profile yields actionable health insights far more precise than broad wellness advice.
This trend appeals to many seeking personalised health solutions, especially those dissatisfied with one-size-fits-all diet or supplement regimes. It capitalises on advances in DNA sequencing, microbiome research, and the desire for "optimised" health, as well as the growing public interest in the gut microbiome's role in health.
The Explosion of DTC Microbiome Kits
Taking advantage of this interest, several businesses now provide at-home microbiome testing: you send a stool sample, they sequence your gut microbes, and they return a "gut health" report that frequently includes dietary or supplement recommendations.
Many of these same companies that sell the tests also push proprietary supplements or follow-up tests based on your microbiome report.
The Controversy: Wellness Buzz or Medical Overreach?
Proponents of microbiome-based wellness see “post-biotic therapy” as the next frontier, a chance to personalise health beyond generic diets. Yet critics warn that in its current form, the combination of unregulated tests + speculative interventions mostly results in expensive guesswork. Many call it “premature commercialisation”, turning evolving scientific research into marketable products before the science is settled.
The ethical and social implications of DTC gut microbiome test kits are often overlooked, with regard to their perception (i.e. health responsibility of the individual and the impact of social/environmental factors such as food and diet/health choices).
Case Study
Here is a case study-style overview of the business models and data-privacy/ethical challenges of leading personalised nutrition companies that use stool (gut microbiome) samples to give diet recommendations.
What these companies are trying to do, business model & value proposition...
Many companies in the personalised-nutrition / microbiome space offer at-home stool (faecal) sample kits: users collect a sample, send it to a lab for sequencing (microbial DNA/RNA), then receive a customised report with diet, lifestyle or supplement recommendations.
Behind the value offer is a scientific narrative: these firms posit that gut microbiome composition (which varies person to person) strongly influences digestion, metabolic health (blood sugar), inflammation, and even mental health, and so tailoring diet based on the microbiome could improve health or prevent disease.
Their business model often combines multiple revenue streams, such as the one-time sale of the testing kit, including sample collection and sequencing, with recurring revenue through subscription services for diet plans or supplement delivery-including probiotics, prebiotics, vitamins, and custom supplements. Upselling/cross-selling follow-up tests: repeat stool tests to track changes, "gut health over time," or additional services like blood tests, health-tracking apps, personalised nutrition plans. The data accumulates because these companies collect sensitive biological data-microbiome + metadata: diet, lifestyle, health history-thus building large proprietary datasets. These datasets themselves are often the foundation for their AI/ML models that generate personalised recommendations.
From the business perspective, this yields a “data-moat” / network-effect advantage: as more users contribute samples, the company’s database grows, enabling more refined algorithms (machine-learning), better “personalisation,” and the possibility of research or collaboration with medical, pharma or wellness companies.
- Example: DayTwo (Israel-based) licensed academic research from Weizmann Institute of Science to build a machine-learning model that predicts post-meal glycemic (blood sugar) response using gut microbiome + personal metadata.
- Another example: Viome offers stool (and sometimes saliva/blood) sample-based tests, running RNA/gene-expression or microbial community sequencing, then providing personalised diet, lifestyle and supplement advice through its platform.
- In sum: the business model rests on direct-to-consumer (DTC) testing kits + recurring subscriptions (diet/supplement plans) + proprietary data collection and ML-based personalisation.
Example 1 - Company: DayTwo
- What they do / Promise: Gut-microbiome-based algorithm to predict an individual's post-meal glycemic response; personalised diets to control blood sugar.
- Business model/monetisation: Sell stool-sample kit + subscription/nutrition planner app; proprietary ML model + recurrent diet advice.
- Data privacy / Scientific validity / Criticisms: Privacy policy allows deletion of identifiable data, but non-identifiable data (microbiome + metadata) may be used for research/profiling / commercial uses. Scientifically, good foundational research — but real-world reproducibility and generalizability remain contested (small samples, proprietary cohorts).
Example 2: Company: Viome
- What they do / Promise: Offers “gut intelligence” and personalised nutrition + supplement advice based on stool (and sometimes saliva/blood) microbiome & RNA/gene expression analyses.
- Business model/monetisation: Sell test kits; subscription for supplement/diet plans + recurring supplement shipments; accumulate large biological datasets to feed AI-based personalisation.
- Data privacy / Scientific validity / Criticisms: Claims encrypted storage, separation of personally identifying info, and promise not to sell data to insurers/employers. But external reviews and consumer feedback raise doubts over the clarity of recommendations, consistency, and transparency; some call results “vague” and question whether recommendations are truly individualised rather than generic. Also, many studies supporting their claims are internal and proprietary, making independent validation difficult.
These examples illustrate both the potential and the pitfalls, promising tech + personalised health narrative, but with real and serious questions around validity, transparency, and privacy.
What’s Next for Microbiome-Based Personalisation?
The next decade will take microbiome nutrition far beyond today’s supplements and food lists. Emerging developments include: Real-time microbiome monitoring via ingestible sensors, Microbiome-adjusted meal delivery services, AI nutrition coaches integrating microbiome + continuous glucose + wearable data, Microbiome therapeutics targeting depression, obesity, and autoimmune disorders, Precision agriculture producing foods designed for microbial impact.
In short, microbiome-based personalisation is moving from niche wellness to mainstream health science.
Final Thoughts
The microbiome economy is a paradigm shift regarding how we understand food, health, and personal identity. With the assistance of new technologies that allow us to read the DNA of the microorganisms living in our bodies (the human microbiome), we now have access to personalised nutrition based on the specific composition of our microbiome. Although sequencing your gut biome won't replace traditional nutrition, the technology will help to create a smarter, more personalised, and more actionable approach to nutrition. As sequencing costs continue to decrease and our understanding of gut biomes continues to evolve, we will continue to see personalised microbiome-based diets become as widespread as fitness-tracking devices, providing a pathway to a completely individualised approach to healthy eating.
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