Two Words: Fecal Transplant

What is a ‘Fecal Transplant’ you may ask?  Nothing good.

Source: Fecal transplants , or fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT), work by repopulating the gut with a healthier array of microorganisms. Stool from a donor is processed and then transplanted into the gut of the recipient.

That’s right.  You’re going to have to eat shit.  Kinda.

Before treatment the patients were asked in detail about their symptoms. They were then randomly assigned to receive 30 grams of a solution containing their own feces — the placebo — or one of two doses (30g or 60g) containing feces from a so-called super donor. The doses were delivered to the small intestine through a tube inserted into the mouth and down the throat.

Three months later, the patients were again asked to detail their symptoms. Compared to before treatment, 23.6 percent of patients in the placebo group reported moderate symptom improvement. In the group that received the lower dose of super donor feces, 76.9 reported a moderate response, and in the higher dose group, 89.1 percent.

More important, they also found symptom remission — meaning that symptoms went away entirely — in 35.2 percent of those in the lower dose group, and in 47.3 percent of those in the higher dose group. That’s compared to 5.5 percent of the patients in the placebo group who reported symptom remission.

“Small intestine through a tube inserted into the mouth and down the throat” is the part of that procedure that needs an explanation. It’s probably delivered in as sterile an environment as possible and I’m sure there’s a guarantee from the medical staff that none of the ‘Super Donor’ sample touches any part of your mouth.

And what do these ‘Super Donors’ eat?  Are they vegan? How do you become a ‘Super Donor’?

Lots of questions and finally an answer for those who have to travel with a roll of TP everywhere they go.