Ilya Ilyich Mechnikov was a Ukrainian and Russian pathologist best known for his pioneering research in immunology. Known as the Father of Orthobiosis theory and Probiotics, he was credited in 1882 with the discovery of phagocytes, which came to be known as the major defence mechanism in innate immunity.
No less than 75% of the immune cells of the body are thought to be found in the gut. This means that the gut flora is important to ensuring our immune defence is functioning correctly. Together with Mechnikov’s discovery, functional medicine believes that if the gut is healthy, the person is healthy. Therefore, treat the gut first.