--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We mostly don't get sick. Most often…" description: "\"We mostly don't get sick. Most often, bacteria are keeping us well.\" — Bonnie Bassler" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd2/bonnie-bassler-16646_bacteria_we-mostly-don-t-get-sick-most-often-bact_300374.png" --- # We mostly don't get sick. Most often, bacteria are keeping… ![“We mostly don't get sick. Most often, bacteria are keeping us well.” quote by Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd2/bonnie-bassler-16646_bacteria_we-mostly-don-t-get-sick-most-often-bact_300374.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd2/bonnie-bassler-16646_bacteria_we-mostly-don-t-get-sick-most-often-bact_300374.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fd2/bonnie-bassler-16646_bacteria_we-mostly-don-t-get-sick-most-often-bact_300374.png) > “We mostly don't get sick. Most often, bacteria are keeping us well.” [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Highlights that many microbes are beneficial, emphasizing a balanced view of bacteria. **In simple terms:** Bacteria often help us stay healthy. Key Takeaway Recognize beneficial microbes. Themes health microbiology balance Mood informative thoughtful Type educational scientific When to use this quote - medical research - public health education Key Concepts symbiosis immune system ecology Questions to Reflect On - How does this perspective affect antibiotic use? - What are examples of beneficial bacteria? A Different Perspective Oversimplifying microbes can ignore harmful strains. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bacteria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bacteria/) ## Related quotes > [“Sometimes people don't get sick from bacteria or a virus- -living organisms alien to the human body- -but from the human brain itself. Our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buket-uzuner/sometimes-people-don-t-get-sick-from-bacteria-or-a-virus-living/) [Buket Uzuner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buket-uzuner/) > [Most bacteria aren't bad. We breathe and eat and ingest gobs of bacteria every single moment of our lives. 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We got the gene, and we plugged…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/i-remember-the-day-we-found-the-gene-for-the-inter-species-signaling/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [You live in intimate association with bacteria, and you couldn't survive without them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/you-live-in-intimate-association-with-bacteria-and-you-couldn-t/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [Bacteria live in unbelievable mixtures of hundreds or thousands of species. Like on your teeth. There are 600 species of bacteria on your teeth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/bacteria-live-in-unbelievable-mixtures-of-hundreds-or-thousands-of/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [Bacteria mineralized the rocks; they deposited the iron. They made the geology we see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/bacteria-mineralized-the-rocks-they-deposited-the-iron-they-made-the/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [If a bacterium is trying to infect you, it won't secrete alone, because your immune system will block it. Bacteria will hide until they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/if-a-bacterium-is-trying-to-infect-you-it-won-t-secrete-alone-because/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [My bacteria glow in the dark - no human being doesn't like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/my-bacteria-glow-in-the-dark-no-human-being-doesn-t-like-that/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [By weight, you are more human than bacteria, because your cells are bigger, but by numbers, it's not even close.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/by-weight-you-are-more-human-than-bacteria-because-your-cells-are/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [You can find bacteria everywhere. They're invisible to us. I've never seen a bacterium, except under a microscope. They're so small, we don't see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/you-can-find-bacteria-everywhere-they-re-invisible-to-us-i-ve-never/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) ## More by Bonnie Bassler > [It's a manic-depressive life. You run in here, you open your incubator, your experiment makes no sense, you think, 'I hate this job.' Then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/it-s-a-manic-depressive-life-you-run-in-here-you-open-your-incubator/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [All these bacteria that coat our skin and live in our intestines, they fend off bad bacteria. They protect us. And you can't even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/all-these-bacteria-that-coat-our-skin-and-live-in-our-intestines-they/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [My bacteria glow in the dark - no human being doesn't like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/my-bacteria-glow-in-the-dark-no-human-being-doesn-t-like-that/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [Most bacteria aren't bad. We breathe and eat and ingest gobs of bacteria every single moment of our lives. Our food is covered in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/most-bacteria-aren-t-bad-we-breathe-and-eat-and-ingest-gobs-of/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [I called up and said, 'Dad, I won a MacArthur.' My father goes: 'I always thought your sister would win that,' and I said,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/i-called-up-and-said-dad-i-won-a-macarthur-my-father-goes-i-always/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [By weight, you are more human than bacteria, because your cells are bigger, but by numbers, it's not even close.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/by-weight-you-are-more-human-than-bacteria-because-your-cells-are/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [We've all been sick; we're all afraid of infection. I think the easiest application to help people understand what quorum sensing is and why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/we-ve-all-been-sick-we-re-all-afraid-of-infection-i-think-the-easiest/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [You can find bacteria everywhere. They're invisible to us. I've never seen a bacterium, except under a microscope. They're so small, we don't see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/you-can-find-bacteria-everywhere-they-re-invisible-to-us-i-ve-never/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [If a bacterium is trying to infect you, it won't secrete alone, because your immune system will block it. Bacteria will hide until they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/if-a-bacterium-is-trying-to-infect-you-it-won-t-secrete-alone-because/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [Bacteria mineralized the rocks; they deposited the iron. They made the geology we see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/bacteria-mineralized-the-rocks-they-deposited-the-iron-they-made-the/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [You think of yourselves as human beings, but I think of you as 99 percent bacterial.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/you-think-of-yourselves-as-human-beings-but-i-think-of-you-as-99/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [Bacteria live in unbelievable mixtures of hundreds or thousands of species. Like on your teeth. There are 600 species of bacteria on your teeth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/bacteria-live-in-unbelievable-mixtures-of-hundreds-or-thousands-of/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [You live in intimate association with bacteria, and you couldn't survive without them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/you-live-in-intimate-association-with-bacteria-and-you-couldn-t/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [I remember the day we found the gene for the inter-species signaling molecule like it was yesterday. We got the gene, and we plugged…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/i-remember-the-day-we-found-the-gene-for-the-inter-species-signaling/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) > [If I didn't teach the aerobics class, I wouldn't come, and I need to stay in shape. I've got a whole wardrobe of sleeveless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-bassler/if-i-didn-t-teach-the-aerobics-class-i-wouldn-t-come-and-i-need-to/) [Bonnie Bassler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) [Explore all 39 Bonnie Bassler quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-bassler/) ## More Bacteria quotes > [“Bacteria and viruses were the most effective allies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-hughes-galeano/bacteria-and-viruses-were-the-most-effective-allies/) [Eduardo Hughes Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-hughes-galeano/) > [...The large majority of those infectious microbes that cause us so much illness and pain are ANAEROBIC...a big word that means they live and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-mccabe/the-large-majority-of-those-infectious-microbes-that-cause-us-so-much/) [Ed McCabe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-mccabe/) > [You can't just boss bacteria around like that," said the younger Mrs. Hempstock. "They don't like it." "Stuff and silliness," said the old lady.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/you-can-t-just-boss-bacteria-around-like-that-said-the-younger-mrs/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are more microbes per person than the entire population of the world. Imagine that. Per person. This means that if the time scale…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bennett/there-are-more-microbes-per-person-than-the-entire-population-of-the/) [Alan Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bennett/) > [“Drinking lots of alcohol makes the gut leakier, allowing microbes to more readily influence the brain. Could that help to explain why alcoholics often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/drinking-lots-of-alcohol-makes-the-gut-leakier-allowing-microbes-to/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“According to pioneering microbiologist Lynn Margulis, "fully 10 percent of our own dry body weight consists of bacteria, some of which, although they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcia-bjornerud/according-to-pioneering-microbiologist-lynn-margulis-fully-10-percent/) Marcia Bjornerud > [Plants with leaves no more efficient than today's solar cells could out-compete real plants, crowding the biosphere with an inedible foliage. Tough omnivorous bacteria…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-eric-drexler/plants-with-leaves-no-more-efficient-than-today-s-solar-cells-could/) [K. Eric Drexler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-eric-drexler/) > [Nineteen hundred and three will bring great advances in surgery, in the study of bacteria, in the knowledge of the cause and prevention of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-a-edison/nineteen-hundred-and-three-will-bring-great-advances-in-surgery-in/) [Thomas A. Edison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-a-edison/) > [Most people are surprised when they hear my somber figures: we know of 2 million species of plants, animals and microorganisms, and we can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/most-people-are-surprised-when-they-hear-my-somber-figures-we-know-of/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [Harmful bacteria, viruses, calcium-forming micro-organisms, and candida are part of our world. Unfortunately, so are toxic chemicals, including everything from pesticides to car pollution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wolfe/harmful-bacteria-viruses-calcium-forming-micro-organisms-and-candida/) [David Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wolfe/) > [With one linear centimeter of your lower colon there lives and works more bacteria (about 100 billion) that all humans who have ever been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/with-one-linear-centimeter-of-your-lower-colon-there-lives-and-works/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [“Eighty-five percent of recorded species live in the terrestrial realm, and the majority of these, some 850,000, are arthropods (that is, insects, spiders, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-e-leakey/eighty-five-percent-of-recorded-species-live-in-the-terrestrial-realm/) Richard E. Leakey > [As far as I am concerned, LGBT can only stand for leprosy, gonorrhea, bacteria, and tuberculosis, all of which are detrimental to human existence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yahya-jammeh/as-far-as-i-am-concerned-lgbt-can-only-stand-for-leprosy-gonorrhea/) [Yahya Jammeh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yahya-jammeh/) > [There are about 250,000 different species of fossil plants and animals known . . In spite of this large quantity of information, it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-m-raup/there-are-about-250-000-different-species-of-fossil-plants-and/) [David M. Raup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-m-raup/) > [Human health should now be thought of as a collective property of the human-associate d microbiota, as one group of researchers recently concluded in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/human-health-should-now-be-thought-of-as-a-collective-property-of-the/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) [Browse all 285 Bacteria quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bacteria/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We mostly don't get sick. 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