What Do We Collect?
From Who?
Why and How?
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Stool
Milk: Breast/Donor
Urine
Allergy Test
Nose Swab
Blood
Hair
Questionnaires
What most consider waste, is science “gold” for us at BLOOM. Your child’s generous and frequent donation of stool is frozen immediately after collection. This is done to preserve the quality of the tiny living things that live in your child’s gut.
We collect stool samples during the most important phases of children’s development. In the future, we will closely study the samples to learn how the gut microbiome of children born at different ages functions and develops over time. We will also explore how the microbiome might protect or expose children to illness and disease.
Milk: Breast/Donor
Nutrition in the first years of life plays such an important role in shaping the gut microbiome ! We ask parents of babies who join at birth and are consuming human milk to provide us with up to eight samples. We do not ask parents to provide formula samples – it is expensive and the nutrition information is publicly available.
We want to look at what makes up each milk type and how it impacts the microbiome of children born preterm.
Urine
Your child’s urine samples follow a similar path as the stool samples. Our lab team has been getting a workout squeezing every last drop of urine out of the cotton balls using a syringe.
The urine samples tell us about a hormone called cortisol. This hormone gives us an inside look at how the brain responds to stress. The urine sample also gives us the cortisol level at the time of collection – like a snapshot! Our goal is to learn more about the gut microbiome -brain connection by using information from the stool and urine samples.
Allergy Test
*Testing conducted by a
trained pediatric healthcare provider*
The allergy test done at the study clinic visits give us clues about your child’s immune system. This test gives us an idea of how your child’s body reacts to common allergens like peanuts, and allergens linked to asthma, like dust mites. We do these tests when your child is 1 year and 3 years old, to see how their immune response changes as they grow.
By looking at the results of these tests and studying your child’s gut microbiome , we are figuring out how their body reacts to their environment. We are also exploring how their microbiome might play a role in this reaction.
Nose Swab
*Testing conducted by a
trained pediatric healthcare provider*
At the 1-year and 3-year in-person clinic visits, we use a special swab made just for young children to collect this sample from your child’s nasal passage. The swab is a thin, bendy wire with a soft cotton tip, like a tiny Q-tip. This small snotty sample gives us valuable information about the gut microbiome in your child’s nose!
This allows us to learn more about how their nasal microbiome is linked to inflammatory conditions such as asthma.
Blood Sample
*Testing conducted by a
trained pediatric healthcare provider*
A pediatric trained care provider will gently collect a small blood sample from your child at the in-person clinic visits. They will draw about 1 teaspoon of blood (3 – 5 mLs) and will do their very best to minimize discomfort and pokes.
The blood sample contains lots of valuable information about the immune system. By looking closely at the immune cells and their special messengers, we can learn how they develop and function in this special population of children. This sample helps us study the relationship between childhood health outcomes and the gut microbiome of infants born preterm.
Hair Sample
We will ask you or one of our team members to collect a very small hair sample (1 cm wide) from the nape of your child’s neck.
Hair contains cortisol, a hormone produced in response to stress. The hair sample also allows us to look at the change in the levels of cortisol over time. This gives us an idea of stress levels at different ages! Studying this hormone allows us to investigate how your child’s stress impacts their gut microbiome and gut health.
Questionnaires and Health Information
Biological samples tell us amazing things about the organisms and substances present inside the body. But we also need to know about what factors outside the body impact the gut microbiome . You have likely encountered at least one of our questionnaires and know that we ask a ton of questions! The reason we are thorough is that we want to get a COMPLETE picture of what your child is exposed to. Your answers cover a wide range of topics from demographics, health, home environment, nutrition, and more. This helps us learn how our environment shapes our children’s microbiomes and their health. As we learn about which habits and factors encourage a balanced gut community, we can help shape future healthcare and lifestyle recommendations.
Our team is dedicated to ensuring your child's comfort, and we will make every effort to make the experience as gentle as possible for them.
