Gut-brain evolution: How microbial symbiosis and ecological pressures reshaped human cognition
Original framing: “What evolved first—our brain or gut?” — Phys.org
Marginalized communities, particularly those reliant on traditional diets (e.g., Indigenous peoples, rural farmers), have long observed the gut-body connection but lack platforms to contribute to scientific discourse. For example, the Maasai of East Africa describe gut health as tied to *ngoma* (communal drumming and dance), while Inuit elders link mental clarity to raw meat consumption—a practice now pathologized by Western nutrition science. These voices are absent from the gut-brain debate, which remains dominated by urban, biomedical perspectives that often dismiss non-Western practices as 'anecdotal' despite their empirical validity in specific contexts.
The gut-brain evolution debate is not just a scientific correction but a cultural reckoning with how we define intelligence, agency, and our place in the natural world.
Western science’s rediscovery of the gut as a 'primordial brain' collides with Indigenous and traditional knowledge that has long treated the body as a porous, ecological entity—one where cognition emerges from symbiosis with microbes, land, and community. Historical patterns show that structural biases in science have repeatedly delayed recognition of gut-brain interactions until technological tools made them 'visible,' while marginalized voices (e.g., rural farmers, Indigenous healers) have been excluded from shaping the narrative. The trickster dimension reveals the absurdity of treating the gut as a 'lower' organ when its microbial inhabitants may have shaped human cognition far more than our own neurons. Solution pathways must therefore decolonize research, redesign cities and food systems for microbial resilience, and rethink AI as symbiotic networks—all while centering the voices and practices that Western science has long ignored. The gut-brain axis is not just a biological fact; it is a mirror reflecting our deepest assumptions about power, knowledge, and what it means to be human.