Why We Chose Homesteading: Chickens, Ducklings, Gardens, and the Microbiome Connection

When my husband and I purchased our home on ten acres, it wasn't simply because we wanted more space.

We deliberately chose a property that would allow us to become a little more self-sufficient, a little more connected to nature, and a little less dependent on fragile food supply chains. We wanted room for gardens, fruit trees, chickens, and the opportunity to teach our children where food actually comes from.

This spring, our homestead welcomed its newest residents: baby chickens, guinea fowl keets, and ducklings. Watching them explore their brooder, grow feathers, and develop their own personalities has been both entertaining and deeply rewarding. Alongside our vegetable gardens, herbs, berry bushes, and fruit trees, these animals are becoming part of a larger vision—one centered on food, stewardship, resilience, and health.

As a clinical nutritionist, I often see homesteading through a different lens than many people do. Beyond fresh eggs and homegrown vegetables, I believe homesteading may be one of the most powerful ways to reconnect with something modern life has slowly taken away from us: microbial diversity.

The Modern Homesteading Revival

Homesteading has experienced a remarkable resurgence in recent years. Rising food costs, concerns about supply chain disruptions, dissatisfaction with industrial agriculture, and the flexibility of remote work have encouraged many families to pursue a more self-reliant lifestyle.

Growing food, preserving seasonal harvests, raising backyard poultry, and learning traditional skills can help reduce household expenses while fostering a deeper sense of independence. But there may be another benefit that receives far less attention: rebuilding our relationship with the microbial world.

What We Lost in the Modern World

Over the last century, food production has become increasingly industrialized. Large-scale monoculture farming, heavy pesticide use, ultra-processed foods, indoor lifestyles, and reduced contact with natural environments have transformed the way humans interact with the microbial ecosystems around them.

Ironically, as our environment has become more sanitized, rates of chronic diseases have risen dramatically.

Autoimmune conditions, allergies, eczema, asthma, inflammatory bowel disease, obesity, metabolic dysfunction, and mood disorders have all increased in industrialized societies. While these conditions are multifactorial, researchers increasingly recognize that changes in the human microbiome may be part of the story.

Lessons from Hunter-Gatherer Populations

One of the most fascinating areas of microbiome research involves studying populations that continue to live traditional lifestyles.

Researchers recently analyzed the gut microbiomes of the Hadza people, a hunter-gatherer society in northern Tanzania, and compared them to populations living in Nepal and California.

The findings were remarkable.

The average Hadza individual harbored approximately 730 species of gut microbes. Californians averaged only 277 species. The researchers also identified microbial species within the Hadza population that were entirely absent from most industrialized populations.

These findings suggest that modernization may be accompanied by a substantial loss of microbial diversity.

Scientists sometimes refer to this phenomenon as a form of "microbial extinction." Just as plant and animal species can disappear from ecosystems, microbial species that co-evolved with humans for thousands of years may be disappearing from industrialized societies.

Researchers also found that microbes commonly found in industrialized populations carried more genes associated with oxidative stress responses. This may reflect adaptation to chronic low-grade inflammation that is increasingly common in modern populations.

The implications are profound. We may not only be losing beneficial microbes—we may also be creating environments that favor less resilient microbial ecosystems.

Why Gardening, Foraging, and Homesteading Matter

No, gardening alone will not recreate a hunter-gatherer microbiome.

However, activities such as gardening, foraging, raising animals, spending time outdoors, handling soil, harvesting seasonal foods, and consuming a more diverse range of plants can help restore some of the environmental exposures that humans evolved alongside.

Research consistently demonstrates that greater dietary diversity supports greater microbial diversity.

Every herb, vegetable, berry, edible flower, and seasonal food introduces unique fibers, polyphenols, and bioactive compounds that nourish different microbial communities.

When we grow our own food, we often naturally expand the variety of plants we eat. Suddenly there are fresh herbs in abundance. New vegetables appear in the garden. Wild berries are collected. Edible weeds become part of meals. Seasonal eating becomes normal again.

These practices create opportunities to feed a wider range of beneficial microbes than the standard modern diet typically allows.

Foraging offers another valuable lesson: food does not always come from a package. Nature provides an extraordinary diversity of edible plants, mushrooms, berries, and herbs that have nourished humans for millennia.

In many ways, homesteading encourages us to participate in ecosystems rather than simply consume products.

From the Garden to the Gut

The connection between environmental biodiversity and gut biodiversity is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.

The foods we eat, the environments we spend time in, the animals we interact with, and even the soil beneath our feet all influence the microbial world within us.

This doesn't mean everyone needs ten acres and a flock of chickens.

A small herb garden, a few raised beds, visits to local farms, community gardens, hiking trails, and seasonal farmers markets can all help reconnect us with more diverse food sources and natural environments.

Every step toward greater connection with nature is potentially a step toward greater microbial diversity.

How I Help Clients Optimize Their Microbiome

In my clinical practice, one of the most common patterns I see is reduced microbial diversity combined with signs of gut dysfunction.

Individuals struggling with digestive symptoms, eczema, allergies, autoimmune conditions, fatigue, metabolic dysfunction, hormone imbalances, and chronic inflammation often benefit from a deeper understanding of their gut ecosystem.

To assess the microbiome, I frequently utilize Tiny Health testing.

Unlike traditional stool testing, Tiny Health uses shotgun metagenomic sequencing to provide strain-level analysis of bacteria, fungi, viruses, and other microorganisms within the gut. This allows us to identify patterns that may contribute to symptoms and develop personalized nutrition and lifestyle strategies.

Tiny Health can help identify:

• Low microbial diversity

• Deficiencies in beneficial bacteria

• Overgrowth of potentially problematic organisms

• Signs of gut inflammation and immune activation

• Gut barrier dysfunction

• Microbiome patterns associated with eczema, IBS, fatigue, hormone imbalances, and other chronic concerns

Using these results, I work with clients to create individualized plans focused on nutrition, lifestyle, targeted supplementation, and sustainable habits that support a healthier gut ecosystem.

My goal is not simply symptom management. It is to help restore the conditions that allow the body to function as it was designed to function.

Final Thoughts

Raising chickens will not solve the chronic disease epidemic.

Neither will planting tomatoes or collecting wild berries.

But collectively, these activities reconnect us with something that modern life has steadily removed: our relationship with the natural world.

The garden teaches patience. The chickens teach responsibility. The seasons teach humility. And perhaps, along the way, we gain something even more valuable—a richer connection to the microbial ecosystems that have shaped human health for thousands of years.