Blaser on the utility of normal microflora–and costs of harming them

Martin Blaser has a succinct and potent article in Nature on the health risks of antibiotic disruption of the normal microflora. Since the 1990’s he has mounted a campaign to show the benefits of H pylori and other bacteria that are normal components of our microflora. The below image from the article suggests that this may be important for explaining the recent epidemic of autoimune disease.