JJ Virgin and a co-speaker argue that bacteria in your body may control your behavior more than your brain does. Bacteria have existed for billions of years and can sense their environment, recognize threats, and direct your hunger to meet their needs.
We're not thinking with our brains, we're thinking with our bacteria. What the heck is that? Are we just like meat suits for microbial overlords or what?
I think we've underestimated these little creatures. Bacteria have been around for 3 billion years. We, in our current form, have maybe been around 100,000. And there is an argument that can be made, and we exist merely as a home for the microbiome and that they direct us to find what they want to eat and they direct us to do what they want us to do. And people go, "Oh, come on now." These, well, bacteria are sentient beings, but bacteria see, they don't have eyes, but they can count who's around them. They know who their friends are. They know who their enemies are. So we now know that hunger is actually directed by the microbiome.
