'you are an ecosystem' tells the incredible story of the microscopic world that lives inside our bodies and is known as the microbiome.
Consisting of trillions of tiny microbes, your microbiome plays an essential role in keeping you healthy and protecting you from disease.
Written in a very easy-to-follow style, the story unfolds in a way that relates the complexity of this microbiome to the reader personally.
The hand-drawn illustrations in this book are based on a study of microbial form and help to reveal in a unique way, to a non-specialised audience, what the microbiome is, how it is acquired, how it protects us from illness, and how our lifestyle and diet can influence its diversity.
The book reveals how a diverse microbiome may become depleted due to lifestyle choices such as poor diet, physical inactivity, lack of sleep, overuse of antibiotics or medicine, smoking, drinking, using drugs and hyper-cleanliness. The illustrations demonstrate that as certain species start to disappear an opportunity for other species to proliferate occurs until eventually the diversity of the microbial community becomes limited to just a few species.
why?
In November 2020, I was awarded the degree of Master of Arts in Graphic Design with distinction from the University of Portsmouth. The focus of my research was to ‘examine the opportunities graphic design provides to empower people with knowledge, reasons and inspiration to make better lifestyle choices to prevent or reverse lifestyle illness’. Research led me to discover the importance of the gut microbiome and how it holds the key to our health and happiness.
how?
Gut bacteria and its role in human health is, today, an explosive area of modern scientific research. The discovery of this emerging research into the gut microbiome and the implications for human health and disease highlighted to me the need to communicate this complex scientific information as an accessible health message for a non-specialised audience.
By engaging in discussions with microbiologists from the University of Portsmouth and scientists from the APC Microbiome Institute in Ireland, it was possible to draw together the threads of this research to construct a useful, meaningful and accessible narrative along with a strong visual language.
By identifying and simplifying the complexities of the scientific research ‘you are an ecosystem’ aims to offer hope and inspiration to individuals who are seeking good health or looking to prevent or reverse disease.
Our microbiome consists of trillions of microbes and so the illustrations demonstrate their variety, beauty and detail but above all, aim to demonstrate that a diverse microbiome, full of many different species is essential for health and well-being.
diversity - the key to health
Numerous studies conclude that it is the mix of microbes within the gut that leads to a strong and resilient microbiome which will help to keep you well.
A diverse microbiome may become depleted due to lifestyle choices such as poor diet, physical inactivity, lack of sleep, overuse of antibiotics or medicine, smoking, drinking, using drugs and hyper-cleanliness.
As certain species start to disappear an opportunity for other species to proliferate occurs until eventually the diversity of the microbial community becomes limited to just a few species.
microbial diversity
Promoting and maintaining a microbiome which allows many different species to thrive is essential for your health and well-being.
laura gowers MA, BSc(Hons) graphic designer
In 2018 I embarked upon a two year MA graphic design degree which enhanced the skills I acquired during my experience as a product designer. The possibility to practice traditional craft processes and digital image creation enabled me to develop innovative and exciting ideas by pushing creative boundaries. This led to a deeper understanding of the process by which graphic design can be employed to communicate complex scientific principles to a non-specialised audience and in particular the health benefits of maintaining a healthy microbiome.
I am currently working with APC Microbiome Ireland on a project to promote science among Irish Travellers by highlighting how microbiome science can shed new light on their ethnic identity, history and way of life. The work is based on research led by Professor Fergus Shanahan and colleagues at University College Cork who published an historic 21st Century piece of scientific evidence that confirms the distinct ethnicity of the Irish Traveller community.
I now have the honour to collaborate with Professor Fergus Shanahan on a brand new graphic book which explores the narrative of the microbiome from the perspective of our friends deep within our guts - our microbes.