Working Life: I was interested in finding ways to prevent chronic disease through healthy gut microbiomes

Jens Walter, professor of ecology, food, and the microbiome at UCC and the APC Microbiome Ireland

Jens Walter, professor of ecology, food, and the microbiome at UCC and the APC Microbiome Ireland

“I’ve been a microbiologist for 25 years, and I’ve always been interested in probiotics and prebiotics — the stuff you see in the health section of a supermarket [such as oral supplements].

“Probiotics have been around for a long time, but the problem is they weren’t achieving much in terms of preventing chronic disease. I was interested in finding ways to do that by creating healthy gut microbiomes. I needed to see what the natural microbiome looked like before it was disrupted by modern life and what could be done to restore it.

“My go-to was Papua New Guinea because, as a child, I’d been fascinated by TV documentaries about the remote tribes that lived there, cut off from the modern world until the 1930s. I wanted to see if there was a correlation between the low incidence of chronic disease in their population and their diet.

“In 2008, I sent a random email to a research centre in Papua New Guinea, asking if they could send me some poo samples. Amazingly, they said they would.

“We had to get ethical approval to carry out a clinical trial, which took a few years. We found that rural Papua New Guineans have more diverse microbiomes than their western counterparts, with lower levels of inflammation-causing bacteria.

Jens Walter, professor of ecology, food, and the microbiome at UCC and the APC Microbiome Ireland

“On foot of this research and further analysis at the APC, our team created the NiMeTM diet (non-industrialised microbiome restore) diet, based on recipes inspired by the eating habits of a non-industrialised society. We had used the recipes in a clinical trial and noted improvements such as decreased bad cholesterol, reduced blood sugar, and reduced C-reactive protein, a marker of inflammation and heart disease. This research was published in the scientific journal Cell this year.

“Anyone can download the recipes for free at thenimediet.com. We’ve also teamed up with GourmetFuel, a company which delivers our meals nationwide. For me, this is a game-changer because our meals are grounded in rigorous science.

“My research has completely changed the way I eat. I basically ruined my metabolism in my 20s and in my 30s as a workaholic professor living on takeaways. Now I cook for my family, and my kids know everything about healthy eating, even though they, and sometimes I, cheat.”