In This Article
In This Article
The gastrointestinal tract, or the gut, affects many of your body’s functions.
It’s because inside the gut is a healthy balance of microorganisms, known collectively as your gut microbiome.
Dr. Rizza Mira, our in-house nutrition expert, explains why this is:
“The gut flora takes part in the metabolism of food, maintenance of healthy weight and immunity, and support of healthy interaction between the heart, brain, and other organs.”
Needless to say, an imbalanced gut can trigger a lot of different symptoms.
Besides digestive issues like bloating, gas, or diarrhea, poor gut health can also affect your mood, stress, and energy levels—among other things.
Ombre Gut Health is a simple test that you can take at home to find out if you have imbalances in the gut.
Ombre measures the good and bad bacteria in your gut and tells you which ones are causing related health problems.
Like many gut health tests, Ombre provides personalized recommendations to restore your gut balance and improve your overall health.
Among these suggestions are Ombre’s probiotics, which are designed to target specific needs.
“Probiotics are strains of good bacteria. You can get them from your diet or as supplements. Prebiotics serve as food for these good bacteria so they can thrive,” explains Dr. Mira.
You'll also get personalized food recommendations and prebiotics. Together, these steps are meant to correct specific gut imbalances and any related symptoms.
For example, Ombre’s probiotics use strains that are proven to:1
You can buy the suggested probiotics based on your symptoms. But you can also purchase them separately without taking the test.
I wanted to see what it could do for my body, so I decided to try it out. In my personal Ombre review, you’ll learn what to expect from taking the test.
Summary
We love Ombre because it tests for gut imbalances and explains to you how they affect your health. You'll also get personalized suggestions to improve your gut and overall health.
— Joel
| Sample Collection | Fecal swab |
| DNA Testing Type | Ribosomal RNA (16S RNA) |
| Speed of Test Results | 2 to 4 weeks |
| Gut Health Report | Yes |
| Food Recommendations | Yes |
| Probiotic Suggestions | Yes |
| Privacy Protection | Strong |
| Cost | Starts at $84.99 |
| Payment Plans | Yes, for purchases over $50 (Shop Pay) |
Before tackling my review, I wanted to show you what it’s like to take the Ombre Gut Health Test. Here’s what you can expect from the test:
If you buy the Ombre Gut Health Program, your kit will include one (1) month's supply of Rise Prebiotic. Personally, I went with the basic Ombre Gut Health Test.
Ombre's microbiome test includes:
Taking the test was easy and, quite frankly, not as messy as I thought it would be. The instructions are printed inside the box that came with your kit.
Each step includes a picture, giving you a visual guide on what to do.
You will receive your results within two to four weeks after sending your sample.
If you subscribe to Ombre’s Gut Health Program, you'll get one (1) month’s supply of Ultimate Immunity Probiotic. The company will send it over while processing your results.
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As soon as it's ready, your personalized gut health report will be on Ombre’s website. Your Ombre report will be divided into three parts:
Everything you need to know about your gut microbiome is here. This includes their positive and negative effects on your health.
It's the fastest way to tell how your gut is doing since it rates your gut health on a scale of one to 100. Your gut score depends on the good and bad bacteria present:
The higher your score, the healthier your gut. Lower scores suggest an unhealthy gut. If you want to regularly test your gut flora, the gut score is a quick way to check for improvements.
This score is based on your microbial diversity or the different bacteria in your gut.
Ombre compares your results with the average healthy population from the American Gut Project. Here’s my gut diversity score as an example:
KnowYourDNA / Joel
Compared to the average American, who has 83% gut diversity, I’m doing much better in this department with 95% diversity.
“The more diverse your gut microbiome is, the healthier your gut,” says Dr. Mira.
This section gives you a quick overview of your unique gut environment. It can tell you:
Here, Ombre shows you the percentage of bacteria in your gut, such as:
Ombre also compares your bacteria levels with the healthy average. This report gives you an idea of how much work is needed to achieve gut balance.
You can click on each bacteria from this list to learn more about its potential health benefits and harmful effects.
Here's a sample report from my gut microbiome test. It says that I’m deficient in Lactobacillus—a beneficial bacteria and a probiotic strain.
This section provides a more detailed report of your gut microbiome.
It highlights the total number of bacteria in your gut. You’ll also get a percentage of each strain compared to the total population.
Ombre will tell you if the bacteria is a commensal, pathogenic, or probiotic strain. If these terms confuse you, just click on the question mark icon (?) to see their definitions.
Not all strains will be added to your report. It only measures “statistically relevant” strains or strains that have enough population.
According to Dr. Mira, the most common gut bacteria are Lactobacillus and Bifidobacteria. But other strains are also needed to maintain a healthy balance.
My Ombre report says there are 41,577 bacteria species from my sample.
An imbalanced gut can lead to a number of health problems.
In this report, Ombre predicts which symptoms you may experience. It also tells you which strains of bacteria are likely causing your symptoms.
“Most symptoms affect the stomach and intestines, but gut health can also affect heart, brain, and immune system functioning,” says Dr. Mira.
According to Ombre, some possible symptoms of gut imbalance are:
My report says that I easily get tired because I lack Bacteroides and Bifidobacterium.
Ombre Lab offers a personalized food plan with hundreds of ideas on what foods you should eat and avoid. These recommendations will be based on your microbiome results.
You'll also get food recipes with your report. Each recipe lists the ingredients, instructions, preparation time, cook time, and the number of servings.
The suggested foods will come from different food groups, including:
Recommended foods come with useful facts such as:
Ombre will suggest a probiotic supplement based on your results.
Information like its ingredients, health benefits, and the amount of probiotics per serving are included in your report.
Ombre probiotics contain strains that are targeted for your unique gut imbalance. They can help reduce any related symptoms you've been experiencing.
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Weeks before taking the Ombre microbiome test, I noticed that I was unusually tired all of the time. I wasn't really sure what was going on. But I knew something was wrong.
I was getting sleep and enough meals to stay energized. So there was definitely another reason for my low energy levels.
Since I didn't have time to see a doctor, I decided to give the Ombre Gut Health Test a try.
1. Simple and non-invasive sample collection
Ombre's test isn't invasive or complicated. All you need is a small sample: a cotton swab covered with stool the size of a rice grain.
The boxes that come with your testing kit are numbered and printed with instructions. There’s even a visual guide that you can easily follow.
2. Science-backed results
Ombre uses over 36,000 scientific articles to support your gut report. This includes the latest microbiome research on about 3,000 different strains of gut bacteria.
It's a great way to learn more about your gut microbiome and how they impact your health.
Ombre got most of my symptoms right. While not 100% true at the time of testing, symptoms started to show within weeks of getting my results.
3. Targeted probiotic supplements
Ombre recommends strain-specific probiotics based on your results. Not only do they correct your unique imbalance they also help with your symptoms.
To illustrate, my results showed that I didn't have enough Bifidobacteria in my gut. Ombre suggested that I take the Endless Energy probiotic.
When I looked up its ingredients list, I learned that it contains 5 probiotic strains. One of which is Bifidobacterium Bifidum.
I took the probiotic they suggested for a month without making any adjustments to my diet. I wanted to see if the probiotics alone would help.
At the end of that month, I noticed that I was less tired—though I still had other symptoms.
4. Comprehensive food recommendations
Ombre doesn't just tell you which foods to eat and avoid for a healthy gut microbiome. It also suggests recipes that include these gut-healthy foods.
You can use these recipes to create your own meal plan. You can exclude food items you're allergic to and make sure that you only eat foods that are compatible with your diet.
After a month of taking Endless Energy, I completely shifted my diet. I strictly followed Ombre's food suggestions and continued taking their probiotics.
I did this for another month and started feeling better overall, both physically and mentally. It really seems to work—at least, for me.
5. Affordable gut microbiome testing
As of this writing, Ombre has the most affordable at-home gut testing kit. You can buy the Ombre Gut Test for only $84.99 if you subscribe to their service.
The gut testing company also offers discounts from time to time. And the best part? You can split your payment with their installment-free plans via Shop Pay.
1. Can't tell if you have leaky gut
Ombre doesn't check for biomarkers that may suggest a leaky gut problem. If you want to find out, you may need to take another test or see your doctor.
2. Limited gut testing
Ombre's laboratory only analyzes stool samples for gut bacteria. It doesn't check for the presence of other microbes that may live in your gut, like parasites, viruses, fungi, and yeasts.
These microorganisms can also make up your gut environment.
Below, we compare Ombre with its top competitors.
Viome's Gut Intelligence Test is a lot like what Ombre has to offer.
Both tests use 16S RNA sequencing to analyze your gut microbiome. They also provide personalized suggestions for your gut and overall health.
While Viome tests for fungi, viruses, and parasites (and Ombre can't), it uses a lot of scientific jargon. Ombre’s results are much easier to interpret.
Viome does offer more complete gut supplements. It also lets you access your report anywhere on your phone. You can learn more in our Viome review.
Biohm is a simple at-home gut test that can check your gut for bacteria and fungi. Like Ombre, it suggests foods and other lifestyle changes that promote gut health.
It has the widest range of gut health supplements that you can choose from. These include probiotics, prebiotics, omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants, and more.
Biohm will tell you which supplements to take based on your results. You can also discuss your test results with a nutritionist for an added fee.
Unfortunately, Biohm's dietary and lifestyle recommendations are not as personalized as Ombre's. They're too generic and will work on anyone that has a gut imbalance.
Here’s our Biohm review.
Yes. Ombre supplements are generally safe. While not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), it isn't necessary for these products.2
Dietary supplements are regulated in the same way as other foods. As long as you don't use them to treat any chronic illness, they should be safe to consume.
Ombre Probiotics also contain probiotics with clinically-proven benefits. They target many health concerns that have been linked to gut flora, such as:
Ombre gut tests are also accurate. Here’s why:
Ombre offers its gut tests and supplements with a one-time payment or interest-free installments via Shop Pay.
The total cost will depend on how you approach the program. You can save more money with special offers, subscriptions, and buying Ombre supplements in bulk.
Cost: $99.99; $84.99 for Ombre subscribers
The Ombre Gut Test is the most basic and affordable option. It covers the test along with your results and personalized recommendations.
This includes foods that you should eat and probiotics that you can take.
You can buy it one-time or pay $24.99 every 2 weeks for 2 months. You can also subscribe to Ombre and get 15% off on the tests you order.
Subscribers can choose to receive the test kit every 3 or 6 months.
Cost: $119.99 on your first purchase, then $35.99 per month for probiotics
Ombre's Gut Health Program has everything in a standard testing kit. This includes your gut health report, food suggestions, and probiotic recommendations.
You also get the following with your purchase:
The total program is valued at $189.98 and will save you $69.99 on your first purchase. But unlike Ombre's Gut Health Test, there's no payment plan available.
| 1 Month Supply with one-time purchase | 1 Month Supply with subscription | 3 Month Supply with one-time purchase | 3 Month Supply with subscription | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ombre Probiotics | $39.99 | $35.99 | $109.97 | $89.99 |
Cost per bottle: $29.99 to $39.99
Ombre offers these probiotic supplements for gut health:
Each bottle contains 60 capsules and will last a month. These probiotics are strain-specific. Meaning they contain probiotic strains that correct specific imbalances.
Ombre will recommend which supplements are best for you, depending on your results. You can then buy them separately after receiving your gut report.
The 3-month supply of Ombre Probiotics is available for $27.49 every two weeks, which you have to pay for two months.
| 1 Month Supply with one-time purchase | 1 Month Supply with subscription | 3 Month Supply with one-time purchase | 3 Month Supply with subscription | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ombre Rise Prebiotic | $49.99 | $44.99 | $139.97 | $114.54 |
Cost per bottle: $38.18 to $49.99
A bottle of Ombre's probiotic powder contains 30 servings, enough to last a month. You can buy a three-month supply for $34.99 every two weeks for two months.
We tried some of the best gut testing kits and even followed their recommendations to see if they would work. Ombre, by far, remains to be our top pick.
Ombre is currently one of the most accurate gut tests on the market. And you can take it at home for a reasonable price.
It uses science-backed information to support your test results, so you can better understand your microbiome and its effects on your health.
Ombre doesn't stop at microbiome testing. It provides actionable insights that will allow you to restore your gut flora.
This includes probiotic supplements that are clinically supported to improve your gut and overall health. You'll also get an extensive list of gut-healthy foods and recipes.
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