[jonnathanson]

It's fiendishly difficult to pry apart correlation and causation for complex conditions like diabetes (which we're steadily reconceptualizing as less of a "disease," and more of a chain reaction of metabolic and hormonal disorders). Changes in gut bacteria are associated with the condition sometimes called "pre-diabetes," or a "pre-diabetic state." But we're not yet sure if they are a causative factor, if they are the result of the condition, or if they're simply co-morbid with it.

Whatever the case, gut bacteria appear to play a vital role in our metabolic health, and we're only beginning to explore this area in earnest.