Our intestinal tract is the largest barrier between us and the environment. More than what we touch or breathe, what we eat is our largest exposure to the outside world. Normally, our entire gastro-intestinal tract is impervious to what is inside of it, allowing our body to pick and choose what comes in or out. But there are things that may make our gut leaky, and chief among them is our diet. What happens is the Standard American Diet can cause gut dysbiosis, meaning a disruption in our gut microbiome, which can lead to intestinal inflammation and a leaky intestinal barrier. Then, tiny bits of undigested food, microbes, and toxins can slip uninvited through our gut lining into our bloodstream, and trigger chronic systemic inflammation. To avoid this dysbiosis and intestinal inflammation, plants should be preferred. Vegetarian diets gut bacteria are associated with intestinal microbiome balance, high bacterial biodiversity, and integrity of …