BODY BUGS WHY WE CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT THEM

Your body is teeming with life. In every nook and cranny, there are miniature ecosystems bursting with bacteria, archaea, fungi, protists and viruses. They form a vital part of your biology, digesting your food, interacting with your immune system and even affecting your mood. Just as different plants and animals live in different habitats on Earth, different species of microbe colonise different parts of your body. The skin on your arms and legs is dry and the temperature is unpredictable, like a desert, so few species are hardy enough to make it their home. But the lining of your gut is warm, wet and full of nutrients, like the tropics, supporting a vast diversity of microscopic life. The microbe communities found in each