--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And in maintaining such constancy…" description: "\"“And in maintaining such constancy, microbes are crucial. They affect the storage of fat. They help to replenish the linings of the gut and skin, repla..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5d/ed-yong-14636_bacteria_and-in-maintaining-such-constancy-microb_3102691.jpg" --- # And in maintaining such constancy, microbes are crucial… ![“And in maintaining such constancy, microbes are crucial. They affect the storage of fat. They help to replenish the linings of the gut and skin, replacing damaged and dying cells with new ones. They ensure the sanctity of the blood-brain barrier-a web of tightly packed cells that lets nutrients…” quote by Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5d/ed-yong-14636_bacteria_and-in-maintaining-such-constancy-microb_3102691.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5d/ed-yong-14636_bacteria_and-in-maintaining-such-constancy-microb_3102691.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5d/ed-yong-14636_bacteria_and-in-maintaining-such-constancy-microb_3102691.jpg) > ““And in maintaining such constancy, microbes are crucial. They affect the storage of fat. They help to replenish the linings of the gut and skin, replacing damaged and dying cells with new ones. They ensure the sanctity of the blood-brain barrier-a web of tightly packed cells that lets nutrients and small molecules pass from blood to brain, but bars the way to larger substances and living cells. They even influence the relentless remodeling of skeletons, in which fresh bone is deposited and old stuff is reabsorbed.”” [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Microbes play essential roles in metabolism, barrier protection, and tissue renewal, influencing overall health. **In simple terms:** Microbes support many body functions. Key Takeaway Support gut health to benefit whole body. Themes biology microbiology health longevity Mood curious optimistic Type scientific educational When to use this quote - diet planning - probiotic supplementation - medical research - fitness recovery Key Concepts symbiosis cell turnover blood‑brain barrier Questions to Reflect On - What lifestyle changes could enhance your microbiome? - How might you monitor gut health over time? A Different Perspective Microbial effects vary by individual and environment, limiting universal advice. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bacteria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bacteria/) [Cells Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cells-influence-5384148/) [Cells Lets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cells-lets-5384149/) [Constancy Microbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/constancy-microbes-5384147/) [Microbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/microbes/) [Microbes Crucial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/microbes-crucial-5384146/) [Old stuff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-stuff/) ## Related quotes > [“Dinsdale and Rohwer found that as humans become more common, so do microbes. From Kingman to Christmas Island, top predators such as sharks went…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/dinsdale-and-rohwer-found-that-as-humans-become-more-common-so-do/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“The world around us is a gigantic reservoir of potential microbial partners. Every mouthful could bring in new microbes that digest a previously unbreakable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/the-world-around-us-is-a-gigantic-reservoir-of-potential-microbial/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“Most animals can't tap into these open-source adaptations deliberately. The flies didn't seek out Spiroplasma to solve their worm problem. Woodrats didn't go looking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/most-animals-can-t-tap-into-these-open-source-adaptations/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [When it comes to music I love old stuff, especially songs that sound like they are of a specific era. For me all of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-mccausland/when-it-comes-to-music-i-love-old-stuff-especially-songs-that-sound/) [Chris McCausland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-mccausland/) > [If 'Heavy Rain' is a huge commercial success, it will show everybody in the industry that the world is sick of first-person shooters, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cage/if-heavy-rain-is-a-huge-commercial-success-it-will-show-everybody-in/) [David Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cage/) > [“The phrase, “technology and education” usually means inventing new gadgets to teach the same old stuff in a thinly disguised version of the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-libow-martinez/the-phrase-technology-and-education-usually-means-inventing-new/) [Sylvia Libow Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-libow-martinez/) > [I try not to look at my old stuff or my new stuff, really. I'm not a fan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tig-notaro/i-try-not-to-look-at-my-old-stuff-or-my-new-stuff-really-i-m-not-a-fan/) [Tig Notaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tig-notaro/) > [“I asked her if she liked PJ Harvey and she said that she liked her old stuff mostly and that Uh Huh Her was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rapp/i-asked-her-if-she-liked-pj-harvey-and-she-said-that-she-liked-her/) [Adam Rapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rapp/) > [It's hard to say a favorite song of my father's. I listen to all his stuff - a lot of the old stuff before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ziggy-marley/it-s-hard-to-say-a-favorite-song-of-my-father-s-i-listen-to-all-his/) [Ziggy Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ziggy-marley/) > [I really like the old stuff that I cut my musical teeth on, and I loved it when the industry was just like that,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-allan/i-really-like-the-old-stuff-that-i-cut-my-musical-teeth-on-and-i/) [Gary Allan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-allan/) > [“You got to imagine your memory is like an old bucket, you know? Once it’s filled up with old stuff there ain’t no way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-child/you-got-to-imagine-your-memory-is-like-an-old-bucket-you-know-once-it/) [Lee Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-child/) > [We fall into the old stuff of textuality, and almost everything becomes safe because nobody wants to talk about what is not safe in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fady-joudah/we-fall-into-the-old-stuff-of-textuality-and-almost-everything/) [Fady Joudah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fady-joudah/) > [Some people love 'Roots;' some people hate 'Roots.' Some people only like the old stuff. Some people want me to play like I did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-cavalera/some-people-love-roots-some-people-hate-roots-some-people-only-like/) [Max Cavalera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-cavalera/) > [In a world where discovery is more important than delivery, it's the people who find, remix and direct attention to old stuff that should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joichi-ito/in-a-world-where-discovery-is-more-important-than-delivery-it-s-the/) [Joichi Ito](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joichi-ito/) > [I still love listening to the old stuff - Marvin Gaye, Michael Jackson, you know. I stick to the old school stuff, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-ross/i-still-love-listening-to-the-old-stuff-marvin-gaye-michael-jackson/) [Evan Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-ross/) ## More by Ed Yong > [“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/) > [“No, the algae were making something that killed the corals via their own microbes. That something turned out to be dissolved organic carbon (DOC);…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/no-the-algae-were-making-something-that-killed-the-corals-via-their/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“Patterson died in 2014 but Mazmanian is now carrying on his friend's work. His long-term goal is to develop a bacterium that people can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/patterson-died-in-2014-but-mazmanian-is-now-carrying-on-his-friend-s/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“Mucus is made from giant molecules called mucins, each consisting of a central protein backbone with thousands of sugar molecules branching off it. These…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/mucus-is-made-from-giant-molecules-called-mucins-each-consisting-of-a/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“The Earth is 4.54 billion years old. A span of time that big is too mind-boggling to comprehend, so let’s collapse the planet’s entire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/the-earth-is-4-54-billion-years-old-a-span-of-time-that-big-is-too/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“Many of the plants that the spider mite targets can release hydrogen cyanide when their tissues are breached. This substance is extraordinarily inimical to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/many-of-the-plants-that-the-spider-mite-targets-can-release-hydrogen/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“When microbiologists first started cataloguing the human microbiome in its entirety they hoped to discover a "core" microbiome: a group of species that everyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/when-microbiologists-first-started-cataloguing-the-human-microbiome/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“Most animals can't tap into these open-source adaptations deliberately. The flies didn't seek out Spiroplasma to solve their worm problem. Woodrats didn't go looking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/most-animals-can-t-tap-into-these-open-source-adaptations/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“Howler monkeys all defecate at the same time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/howler-monkeys-all-defecate-at-the-same-time/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“The variations that exist between the body parts dwarf those that exist between people. Put simply, the bacteria on your forearm are more similar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/the-variations-that-exist-between-the-body-parts-dwarf-those-that/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“It earns its keep. As it digests HMOs, B. infantis releases short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) that feed an infant's gut cells - so while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/it-earns-its-keep-as-it-digests-hmos-b-infantis-releases-short-chain/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“When Hamiltonella's genome was sequenced, the real reason behind the bacterium's protective powers became apparent: about half of its DNA actually belonged to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/when-hamiltonella-s-genome-was-sequenced-the-real-reason-behind-the/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“For one group of wasps, the braconids, transferred genes have enabled a bizarre form of pest control. The females of these wasps lay their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/for-one-group-of-wasps-the-braconids-transferred-genes-have-enabled-a/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“Our darkest fiction is full of Orwellian dystopias, shadowy cabals, and mind-controlling supervillains. But it turns out that the brainless, microscopic, single-celled organisms that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/our-darkest-fiction-is-full-of-orwellian-dystopias-shadowy-cabals-and/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“The world around us is a gigantic reservoir of potential microbial partners. Every mouthful could bring in new microbes that digest a previously unbreakable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/the-world-around-us-is-a-gigantic-reservoir-of-potential-microbial/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) [Explore all 46 Ed Yong quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) ## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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": "“And in maintaining such constancy, microbes are crucial. They affect the storage of fat. They help to replenish the linings of the gut and skin, replacing damaged and dying cells with new ones. They ensure the sanctity of the blood-brain barrier-a web of tightly packed cells that lets nutrients and small molecules pass from blood to brain, but bars the way to larger substances and living cells. 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