Its been well over a year since my last smart gut test so I feel confident in writing this post.
I have had several smart gut tests done over many many months. It routinely “diagnoses” me with UC and Chrohns. I can safely say I have never had either and have had several tests (unrelated to stomach issues) which confirm this. Has anyone else had this experience working with smartgut?
Hi Isaac! It’s important to note that SmartGut doesn’t diagnose you with anything, including UC or Crohn’s. Smartgut simply identifies microbial associations with these conditions. SmartGut is not a diagnostic test.
While you may have microbes at levels that are associated with certain conditions, your healthcare provider would ultimately be the one to use this information to determine the root of your gut issues.
Hi Jennifer. As I understand it, you work at uBiome which is great because I am trying to understand how a healthcare provider would use smartgut to improve upon patient diagnoses wrt current techniques.
If smartGut is not a diagnostic test, what exactly is it?
Isaac
I’m happy to help, Isaac!
SmartGut is a screening test which can serve as another data point in your pursuit of gut health. This data may raise or lower the suspicion of a specific condition, especially a condition that is notoriously hard to test for.
Another great example is SmartGut’s potential use as a monitoring tool and you and your healthcare provider - after diagnosis - work together to control your symptoms. Screening before and after making certain life, diet, or even medication changes may help you see how these changes are affecting your microbiome, what that means for you, and to hone in on the most effective things.
Does this help?
Not really. Everything you state seems very hypothetical. Also, the fact that I have none of the diseases the test purported I have bacteria for makes no sense to me. I don’t see why a doctor would ever order this test, especially if it “false alarms” for a healthy person so often.
This data may raise or lower the suspicion of a specific condition, especially a condition that is notoriously hard to test for.
Can you give examples?
Can’t speak for this test, but doctors generally order such tests to confirm (or rule out) a specific diagnosis, not for screening healthy people. Your case illustrates why 
Simple application of Bayes rule demonstrates the need to characterize ANY test on healthy people.