lassesen 12:51 am on November 24, 2017  

A Spanish Microbiome Test and Analysis

A reader in Spain forward the results they received from Estudios Analiticos Aplicados a la Clinica, Madrid, Spain. I have done two other reviews using sample reports recently (A US Microbiome Test: GI-MAP and Another German Microbiome Test Review), It is nice to do one  with actual patient data.

Evaluation

Criteria: Look at the current list of deep dives of 69 bacteria genus(which comes from high values seen in uBiomes from CFS readers) and count the number of matches, just like I did in posts above. We get 8 or 12% covered by this test (discussion at bottom).

This Report Result

First — I like this report visually and it’s content

  • There are ranges based on Spanish population
    • Less variation due to genetics
    • Less variation due to differences in diets
  • There are RANGES, if you look at the first chart below we see some ranges are huge and some ranges are small.
    • Because uBiome lacks ranges, I have arbitrary picked 1.5x as a threshold. Looking at Bacteroides below we see the normal range is 8-10. A 11 would be an abnormal high. Using my rule of thumb we have 9 x 1.5 = 13.5 as the threshold for abnormal high so a value of 12 would be deemed normal for me but abnormal using ranges (the correct answer).

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Bottom Line

A nice summary is provided at the bottom of abnormalities. Some abnormalities are not cited because they are clinically significant by traditional standards:

  • E.Coli is low normal:  5.4 on a range of 5-7.5
  • Bifidobacterium is low: 6.0 on a range of 6.5-8.5
  • Lactobacillus is low normal: 5 on a range of 4.5-7
  • Firmicutes is low: 8 on a a range of 8.5 -11
  • Akkermania is normal: 7.3 on a range of 5-8
  • Bacteroidetes is low: 7.04 on a range of 8 – 11
    • Note: the Firmicutes:Bacteroidetes normal ratio on this test would be 1.02 to 1 NOT 2.1:1 reported on uBiome — we may have differences of lab process being involved 😦
    • The ratio here is 1.09, high (ALTO)
  • We have significantly low pH (5.5 vs normal range of 6.0- 7.2) – thus excessive acid.

All of the items below are for low (BAJO) bacteria genus – not overgrowths (ALTO)!

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The short coming

The report is centered at the Phylum (50’000 meter view) level with a few specific genus being checked (i.e. Enterobacteriaceae, Pseudomona, Campylobacter, Heliobacter, Akkermansia, Saccharomyces, Bacteroides, Prevotella, Clostridium, Staphylococcus, Enterococos, Roseburia, Eubacterium, Faecalibacterium). Of these, 8 or 12% are on the list of bacteria genus seen with CFS. This means that there is about a 50% chance of seeing any highs bacteria genus (assuming 8 genus are high in a CFS patient’s ubiome).

In other words, you may have major overgrowth causing the low bacteria genus detected by this test but not a single high bacteria genus reports!

Personal View

The test presentation and information is a big positive. The very limited coverage of bacteria genus is a negative — but it is a lot better than the two prior tests that I reviewed.

I would say that taking this test PLUS uBiome would be a good combination. If you happen to be high in one of the 8 covered bacteria genus — then having the local population based ranges is superior to my rule of thumb of 1.5x.

Advise to the reader – this is tough because I can only give advice to alter the Firmicutes:Bacteroidetes ratio, see this post

Avoid

  • capsaicin [2016] Chili Peppers
  • Dairy products [2016]
  • Proton pump inhibitor [2016]

Take

  • Resveratrol [2014]
  • Lactobacillus Fermentum [2017]
  • Pea Fibre [2017]
  • Melatonin [2017]
  • Cranberry [2017]

… and get a uBiome done.

This is an education post to facilitate discussing this approach with your medical professionals. It is not medical advice for the treatment of CFS. Always consult with your medical professional before doing any  changes of diet, supplements or activity. Some items cites may interfere with prescription medicines.