With so much hitting the internet about the importance of having a “healthy microbiome” it is pertinent to clarify what the microbiome is and why it is important.
The ecosystem of microorganisms (bacteria/ fungi) that inhabit your digestive tract is collectively called the gut microbiota and the term microbiome is a collective noun which refers to their genes.
The digestive system starts at the mouth leading through the stomach into the small intestine (where most of our food digestion takes place) and ends with the large intestine and anus. Up until fairly recently, the large intestine was seen as just being the part of our gut which stores the food waste before depositing it through the anus into the toilet.