A Preliminary Study Exploring the Relationship between Occupational Health Hazards and Gut Microbiota among Firefighters.

ABSTRACT: Firefighters are exposed to occupational hazards and have a higher prevalence of health issues. The gut microbiota plays a crucial role in the immune, endocrine, and neural systems, and disruptions in its composition can impact health outcomes. This pilot study aimed to investigate the potential association between occupational factors, changes in gut microbiota, and the development of adverse health outcomes in firefighters. To test this hypothesis, we recruited 15 firefighters and age/sex-matched controls to investigate the relationship between occupational environment and gut microbiota. Firefighters exhibit lower intestinal bacterial alpha diversity and a higher presence of pathogenic bacteria than the control. Moreover, unique gut bacterial taxa were observed in firefighters with high

SUBMITTER: Yoo JY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10533145 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature