One day, you might be able to eat microbes — yes, microbes — to help you lose weight.

Just like a human being, a house or office has its own microbiome, with good and bad microorganisms. One researcher has a targeted idea: to customize our spaces with the right microbes.

Rob Knight | ideas.ted.com

In this excerpt from his TED Book, microbial researcher Rob Knight shares his — and other scientists’ — work to understand the human microbiome — and the key diseases in which it now seems that microbes may play a part, including inflammatory bowel disease, obesity, and allergies and asthma.