United States 2024: knowledge and behaviors about microbiota

1. In the United States, knowledge of microbiota is on the rise this year

Microbiota diversity is also better known this year: 21% know about the vaginal microbiota (+2 points vs. 2023, 20% overall), 21% know the oral microbiota (+3 points vs. 2023, 20% overall) and 22% know the skin microbiota (+4 points vs. 2023, 17% overall).

Americans' knowledge of the characteristics of the microbiota remains below that of the other countries surveyed

2. Americans are less likely to have adopted behaviors to keep their microbiota balanced

Americans are less likely to have adopted behaviors that favor the balance of their microbiota (54% vs. 58% overall).

Some behaviors, however, are more common in the USA, notably the consumption of probiotics (54% vs. 50% overall).
 

3. This year, Americans have received more information about microbiota from their healthcare professionals

Even when antibiotics are prescribed, the level of information transmitted is low, and remains below that of other countries, despite some progress.

34% of Americans have been made aware of the negative consequences of taking antibiotics on the balance of their microbiota (+9 points vs. 2023, 39% overall).

In summary

Progress has been made in the USA this year in terms of knowledge of the microbiota and information passed on by healthcare professionals, but greater awareness on the part of healthcare professionals is essential to improve their understanding and, above all, their behavior.

Methodology

The survey was conducted over the Internet between January 26 and February 26, 2024. For each country, the sample is representative of the population aged 18 and over in terms of :

• gender
• age
• profession
• region
   

Representativeness was ensured via quota sampling, the most commonly used sampling method for obtaining a representative sample of the population studied. The quota variables for each country were gender, age, region, and socio-professional category. The data were adjusted:

• within each country, again to ensure that each population is representative
• globally, so that each country has the same weight. Statistical analyses were carried out using Cosi software (M.L.I., France, 1994), with a significance level of 95%

The survey population was 48% male and 52% female. The average age was 46.1 years. The sample of 7,500 individuals made it possible to carry out a detailed analysis by age group:

• 18-24
• 25-34
• 35-44
• 45-59
• 60 and over
   

Changes from one year to the next have been measured on a like-for-like basis, i.e. calculated taking into account only those countries present in both the first and second editions of the survey. While we do have results for the new countries included in this second edition (Poland, Finland, Morocco, and Vietnam), they have not been taken into account when calculating trends, since they were not included in the first edition of the survey. 
 

The questionnaire includes 27 questions on:

1. socio-demographic data
2. the level of knowledge about microbiomes
3. the level of and desire for information from healthcare professionals
4. the identification and adoption of behaviors designed to combat microbiome imbalances
5. the level of knowledge, information, and behaviors of women about the vulvo-vaginal microbiome
6. health data

The questionnaire lasted ten minutes and the 7,500 individuals had to complete the entire questionnaire in order to be included in the survey. The terms used in the questionnaire to talk about the microbiome have been translated and adapted to the terms used in each country.

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