The Human Microbiome from edX

Context

The human microbiota is a vast collection of symbiotic microbial cells, comprising between 10 to 100 trillion that resided within every individual. This community of bacteria, viruses and fungi that inhabits the human body plays a crucial role in human physiology and disease.

The understanding of the link between the human microbiome and disease is rapidly expanding and this is a valuable area for the improvement of human health. The daily choices people make regarding their diet, exercise routine and hygiene can have a profound impact on their microbiota, making it crucial to understand this relationship.

To promote healthier behaviour, it’s vital to have a deeper understanding of these microorganisms and their impact in human health. This knowledge can empower individuals to make more informed and sustainable decisions regarding their lifestyle, which can ultimately improve their overall well-being.

Solution

To overcome the general lack of knowledge related to the microbiome and help with the understanding of the symbiotic relation between microbes and the human body, EIT Food has developed this short online course to enable anyone that is interested in the subject to understand and discuss how the microbiome affects our daily lives.

This course title is “The Human Microbiome”. It is composed of 12 hours of learning broken down in 3 modules.

On this course, you will look at the links between the human microbiome and diseases, and the role of food in microbiome modulation. You will discuss microbiome complexities and its function in the gastrointestinal tract. You will also learn how the human microbiome changes throughout the human life.

Ambition

Our mission is to help everyone understand what the microbiome is and how it works. We want to empower individuals with the necessary knowledge to improve their health and make wiser decisions concerning their habits in daily life. Through EIT Food online course, we aim to provide a comprehensive understanding of the latest research and insights into the link between health and microbiome for any individual that could be interested.

High level contributors

This course has been designed for anyone with an interest in the subjects related to the human microbiome, how food can influence it, and how this resultantly impacts on human health, and has been produced by the University of Turin, with content provided by the University of Reading, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Microbion and Quadram Bioscience Institute

What's inside

Learning objectives

By the end of the how course, you'll be able to:
Describe how the human microbiome changes throughout the human life
Identify the role of food in the modulation of human microbiome
Explain the functions that human microbiome has in the gastrointestinal tract

Discuss the links between the human microbiome and diseases
Debate the human microbiome and its relationship on our daily lives
Assess the complexity of the human microbiome communities

By the end of the how course, you'll be able to:
Describe how the human microbiome changes throughout the human life
Identify the role of food in the modulation of human microbiome
Explain the functions that human microbiome has in the gastrointestinal tract
Discuss the links between the human microbiome and diseases
Debate the human microbiome and its relationship on our daily lives
Assess the complexity of the human microbiome communities

Syllabus

This course focuses on:

The human microbiome, role in human health and how it changes during life

How can we determine our gut microbiota

The role of food and lifestyle in the modulation of human gut microbiome

The human microbiota and prevention of diseases through microbiota-directed foods

Good to know

Know what's good

, what to watch for

, and possible dealbreakers

Explores the human microbiome, its role in human health, and how it changes during life

Relevant to the field of healthcare, medicine, and biology

Explains the importance of food in modulating the human microbiome

Teaches about the human microbiota and its role in disease prevention through microbiota-directed foods

Reviews summary

Microbiome insightful delight

Learners say this course is insightful and fun with useful readings and demos. It opens up new health promotion methods.

This course provides lots of insight.

"it was so much fun and useful"

"it contain some reading and some demo clip and good medical info"

"open my eye on anew way for health promotion ways"

Activities

Be better prepared before your course. Deepen your understanding during and after it. Supplement your coursework and achieve mastery of the topics covered in The Human Microbiome with these activities:

Review the different types of gut microbiota

Show steps

Learn the foundational terminology and concepts to prepare you for the course

Browse courses on Gut Microbiota

Show steps

Read the article, “The human microbiome” by NIH
Use the resource, “What is the Microbiome?” provided on the Human Microbiome Project website
Create a concept map of the different types of gut microbiota

Show all one activities

Career center

Learners who complete The Human Microbiome will develop knowledge and skills that may be useful to these careers:

Registered Dietitian

As a Registered Dietitian, you would find the The Human Microbiome a useful course when discussing with clients the function that the human microbiome has in the gastrointestinal tract. In addition, you may help clients who have diseases or conditions that are linked to the human microbiome and provide dietary advice to help them.

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Nutritionist

Nutritionists can benefit from this course through gaining knowledge of how food can be used to modulate the human microbiome. With this knowledge, you would be able to develop more effective dietary recommendations for your clients and provide personalized dietary advice based on their individual microbiomes.

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Medical Doctor

Medical Doctors can use knowledge from this course to better understand the relationship between the human microbiome and diseases, enabling you to make more informed decisions about patient care. It can also help you to identify and manage conditions that are linked to the microbiome more effectively.

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Physician Assistant

The Human Microbiome may be useful for you as a Physician Assistant. It can help you to better understand the role of the microbiome in human health and disease. This knowledge can help you to provide more effective care to your patients and make more informed decisions about their treatment.

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Nurse Practitioner

The Human Microbiome may be useful for you as a Nurse Practitioner, helping you to better understand the role of the microbiome in human health and disease. This knowledge may enable you to provide more effective care to your patients and make more informed decisions about their treatment.

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Microbiologist

The Human Microbiome course may be useful to you as a Microbiologist. It can help you to better understand the complexity of the human microbiome communities and how they change throughout the human life. This knowledge can help you to conduct more effective research and develop new treatments for diseases that are linked to the microbiome.

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Research Scientist

The Human Microbiome course may be useful to you as a Research Scientist, particularly if you are interested in conducting research on the human microbiome. It can help you to better understand the complexity of the human microbiome communities and how they change throughout the human life. This knowledge can help you to design and conduct more effective research studies.

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Epidemiologist

As an Epidemiologist, you may find the Human Microbiome course useful. It can help you to better understand the links between the human microbiome and diseases, which can inform your research on the causes and prevention of disease.

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Health Educator

The Human Microbiome course may be useful to you as a Health Educator. It will help equip you with the knowledge you need to educate others about the importance of the microbiome and how to maintain a healthy one. You can also use this knowledge to develop and implement effective health education programs.

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Public Health Nutritionist

As a Public Health Nutritionist, you may be interested in taking the Human Microbiome course. It can help you to better understand the role of food in the modulation of human microbiome, which is an essential component of public health nutrition. This knowledge can help you to develop and implement more effective public health nutrition programs and policies.

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Food Scientist

The Human Microbiome course may be useful for you as a Food Scientist, particularly if you are interested in developing new foods or supplements that can modulate the human microbiome. It can help you to better understand the role of food in the modulation of human microbiome, which is an essential component of food science.

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Biostatistician

As a Biostatistician, you may find the Human Microbiome course useful, especially if you are interested in analyzing data related to the human microbiome. It can help you to better understand the complexity of the human microbiome communities and how they change throughout the human life. This knowledge can help you to develop and implement more effective statistical methods for analyzing microbiome data.

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Health Policy Analyst

The Human Microbiome course may be useful for you as a Health Policy Analyst, particularly if you are interested in developing policies related to the human microbiome. It can help you to better understand the links between the human microbiome and diseases, which can inform your policymaking decisions.

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Science Writer

If you are a Science Writer interested in writing about the human microbiome, The Human Microbiome course may be useful to you. It can help you to better understand the complexity of the human microbiome communities and how they change throughout the human life. This knowledge can help you to write more accurate and informative articles about the microbiome.

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Microbiome Consultant

The Human Microbiome course would be an excellent choice for you as a Microbiome Consultant. It can help you to better understand the complexity of the human microbiome communities and how they change throughout the human life. This knowledge can help you to provide more effective consulting services to your clients.

See salaries and explore the career path for Microbiome Consultant