It’s getting hot.¹ ☀️ Summer is in full swing and warmer temperatures mean a shift in environment that impacts all life: beginning with microbes and rippling out. That’s because temperature shapes microbial activity and growth, which can affect the microbiome of an ecosystem—whether it’s a rainforest, a coral reef, or your gut. So what does this mean for you? Over the next few weeks, we’re coming in hot (with science 🤓). We’ll explore heat, the microbiome, and your health, including: ☀️Specific microbes that protect you from sun damage 🥵A surprising mechanism gut bacteria use to influence your body temperature 🏊‍♀️How taking a dip affects your skin microbiome 🔥What happens to your gut when you’re exposed to high temperatures 🧑‍🍳Microbiome-nurturing recipes to beat the heat Any other hot topics you’re interested in? Share them below. • ¹ Because it’s summer. But also because our planet is changing. Earth’s temperature has risen by an average of 0.14°F per decade since 1880, or about 2°F in total.² Shown above 👀: the change in global surface temperatures from 1884 to 2022.³ Normal temperatures (calculated over a 30-year baseline period from 1951-1980) are shown in white. Higher than normal are indicated by orange and red, and lower than normal are shown in blue. Consider this an urgent reminder that climate change is very real. ² Climate Change: Global Temperature. (2023, January 18). NOAA Climate.gov. https://www.climate.gov/news-features/understanding-climate/climate-change-global-temperature ³ Visual created by NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio

Swifties of the Seed-verse…this one’s for you.¹ 😎 In advance of the re-release, which Bristol Stool type would you give #SpeakNow? Share below.👇 • ¹ The Bristol Stool Chart, developed by Dr. Stephen Lewis and Dr. Ken Heaton at the University of Bristol in 1997, is a universal classification tool for human feces. ⁠You can think of it as a decoder for your toilet bowl—and for your digestive health. Ideally, your poop should be Type 3 or 4—expelling easily, in a singular sausage or snake-like shape. If your poop looks more like a Type 1 or 2, you’re probably constipated. Type 6 or 7 means you’re likely dealing with diarrhea. ⁠

Stressed out? 😖 If you’re reading this as someone struggling with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), you’ve probably experienced a time when stress made your symptoms worse or triggered a flare-up. But why? A study published last month¹ uncovered exactly how chronic stress can inflame the gut and worsen conditions like IBD. 👇 1️⃣ When you’re stressed, your brain produces chemical cues that signal the adrenal glands. 2️⃣ In response, the adrenal glands release hormones called glucocorticoids that act on neurons and glial cells (cells that connect neurons to one another) in your gut. This stimulates the release of molecules that trigger immune cells. 3️⃣ Immune cells then release molecules that are typically used to fight off harmful microbes, but end up causing painful bowel inflammation in people with IBD. 4️⃣ At the same time all of this is going on, glucocorticoids slow down food movement, leading to even more discomfort. It was surprising 😯 to find that glucocorticoids are the main culprit of gut inflammation because these compounds are actually used as a treatment for IBD. Researchers hypothesized that glucocorticoids are anti-inflammatory in short bursts, but chronic stress shifts their role, so they become pro-inflammatory. This discovery suggests that the combination of stress management practices with traditional IBD treatments like drugs could be more effective than drugs alone. 🤝 And the implications extend beyond IBD. This research provides another example of the intricate and profound connection between the gut and the brain (known as the gut-brain axis 🧠). As research continues to identify gut-brain pathways like this, we can unlock new avenues to manage or treat a wide range of gastrointestinal and neurological conditions. What are your go-to methods to manage stress? Share with the group. 👇 Citations below.

Precious cargo. Every DS-01® Welcome Kit comes with a Travel Vial designed for safe transport of your DS-01®. Our Travel Vial: 🎁Is free with your Welcome Kit ☀️Keeps probiotics safe from the damaging effects of moisture and light 💊Holds a 1-week supply of your DS-01® (14 capsules) Taking DS-01® on-the-go? Share a picture of your #vialinthewild (and don’t forget to tag @seed 🤓). Not a member? 👋 Link in bio to start your DS-01® journey.

How are you considering your microbes this week? Take some inspo from this squirrel 🐿️ and fill up on fiber. Fiber is a key nutrient for gastrointestinal and whole-body health. Among its many roles, it helps keep you regular 💩, lowers cholesterol and inflammation, stabilizes blood sugar levels, and provides a fuel source for your microbes. 🦠 The problem is, most of us (read: 95% in the U.S.¹) don’t get enough fiber. The average American consumes only 16 grams each day, a drastic decrease in fiber intake compared to the humans of our past. Studies of the Hadza hunter-gatherers of Tanzania suggest that early humans ate 100-150 grams of fiber per day²—the equivalent of ~20 servings of whole wheat pasta and almost 10x what the average American consumes now. 🤯 Today, the National Institute of Medicine recommends a daily fiber intake of 25 grams for women and 38 grams for men. Fortunately, many fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts, and seeds are loaded with plant-based fiber, making this an easy nutrient to incorporate into your diet if you make a conscious effort to do so. 🥦🫐🍎🍌🥑🥕 What’s your favorite fiber-rich input? Drop it below.👇#EatYourVegetablesDay • 📷: @erica.sackrison ¹ Quagliani, D., & Felt-Gunderson, P. (2016). Closing America’s Fiber Intake Gap: Communication Strategies From a Food and Fiber Summit. American journal of lifestyle medicine, 11(1), 80–85. https://doi.org/10.1177/1559827615588079 ² Smits, S. A., Leach, J., Sonnenburg, E. D., Gonzalez, C. G., Lichtman, J. S., Reid, G., Knight, R., Manjurano, A., Changalucha, J., Elias, J. E., Dominguez-Bello, M. G., & Sonnenburg, J. L. (2017). Seasonal cycling in the gut microbiome of the Hadza hunter-gatherers of Tanzania. Science (New York, N.Y.), 357(6353), 802–806. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aan4834

June Learning List: How We’re Nurturing our Minds This Month Swipe for our top eight reads 📚, listens 🎧, and watches 👀. Anything to add? Drop your recs below.

POV: You’re driving behind a member of the Seed team.¹ 🚗 • ¹ Last year, our designers created custom Seed bumper stickers for our internal team.² If you see us out in the world, give us a wave hello. 👋 ² Want to get your hands on one? Share an idea for a new sticker below. The comment with the most likes by Monday at 12pm PST earns a reward. 😉✨

At 7:57 am PST today, the sun ☀️ hovered directly over the Tropic of Cancer at 23.4° north latitude, marking the summer solstice—the longest day of the year here in the Northern Hemisphere. Now that summer is in full swing, you may be wondering: Will my probiotic survive shipping in the heat? Probiotics are live microorganisms, so they’re sensitive to factors like light ☀️, moisture 💧, and heat 🔥. That’s why we’ve conducted extensive testing, including heat sensitivity, to ensure live bacteria arrive at your door safely—regardless of what time of year it is. After 10 days of constant, 24-hour, 100º F exposure, our probiotic bacteria counts and viability exceeded the living cell counts (AFU) stated on our label. Translation: Our probiotics beat the heat. To learn more about DS-01® (for adults) and PDS-08™ (for kids 3+), head to the link in our bio.

Your summer guide to 🍉🌽🍒🥬🍑 Pro tip: Save this list for future reference. For our friends in the Northern Hemisphere, tomorrow is the first day of summer. ☀️This time is marked by an abundance of in-season produce¹, and it’s the perfect opportunity to incorporate a wide range of plants into your diet. Dietary components in fruits and veggies, such as polyphenols and fibers, directly interact with your gut microbes. Increasing your consumption of fruits and vegetables can enrich specific microbial species and increase microbial diversity (a key marker of health). Swipe for a list of our favorite microbiome-nurturing summer foods to add to your cart this season. Then, keep swiping to nerd out on the benefits. 🤓 • ¹ Eating seasonally is a great way to save money and cut back on the environmental impact of the food supply chain. To stock off-season produce, suppliers source food from all over the world. Transporting off-season fruits and vegetables long distances means higher shipping costs, a higher carbon footprint, and higher prices once they eventually reach the store. In addition to diversifying the foods you consume, choosing produce that’s in season (with respect to where you live) is one key element of a sustainable diet.

In honor of Father’s Day, we bring you the Bristol Stool Chart¹: TV Dads² Edition. To all the fathers and father figures out there, thank you.💚 Tag the special ones in your life below—your father, grandfather, uncle, older brother, the dad to your favorite pet, a TV dad we missed. • ¹ The Bristol Stool Chart, developed by Dr. Stephen Lewis and Dr. Ken Heaton at the University of Bristol in 1997, is a universal classification tool for human stool. ⁠You can think of it as a decoder for your toilet bowl—and for your digestive health. Ideally, your poop should be Type 3 or 4, expelling easily, in a singular sausage or snake-like shape. If your poop looks more like a Type 1 or 2, you’re probably constipated. Type 6 or 7 means you’re likely dealing with diarrhea. ⁠ ² Regardless of what number they’re dropping, dads are known for spending a lot of time in the bathroom. 🚽Want to make that time go smoother? DS-01® is formulated with strains studied to support occasional bloating, healthy motility, regularity, and digestion. Translation? Easy, smooth poops. 💩Link in bio to explore.

Your gut microbiome has a profound impact on your gastrointestinal and overall health, so nurturing your microbial community is critical. One of the most meaningful ways to do this is through diet. 🥑🍎🥗🥦🥪 Just as there is no one healthy microbiome, there is no one-size-fits-all “best” diet for your microbes. There are, however, some general guidelines to follow. Swipe for 5️⃣👉

You asked 🤔, we answered. ➡️