
Fit Healthy Momma Rating: 9/10
Viome is revolutionizing the healthcare industry by taking a proactive, accessible approach to testing and understanding our individual health and nutrition needs. With simple, at-home testing and personalized results and recommendations, Viome is helping us live healthier, more optimized lives.
Gut health, microbiome, probiotics… are just a handful of popular buzz words that we’ve heard echoing throughout the wellness industry over the last few years. But what does it all mean and why has this become so important?
Well, for starters, thanks to technology and increased clinical studies, we’re learning so much more about our gut health and how it relates to our overall wellness. So as someone who cares deeply about my health and is always on a mission to fine-tune it and optimize it for energy, longevity, and health, I was intrigued as to how I could begin a journey to better gut health.
I was recently given the opportunity to try Viome out and excitedly agreed! I took Viome’s gut health test and am here to report back with my experience, findings, and review with you so that you can decide if testing your gut health with Viome is going to be an impactful decision for you. Let’s jump in!
Quick Summary of Viome Review
Product: | |
Brand: | Viome |
Founder: | Naveen Jain (linkedin profile) |
Website: | |
Best for: | Testing the health of your gut microbiome and getting actionable steps + supplements (probiotics and prebiotics) to help restore your gut health. |
Price: | $199 $129 |
Membership cost: | From $59.95/month |
Avg. User Rating: | 4/5 |
FHM Rating: | 9/10 |
What Is Viome?
Viome is a testing and data analysis platform that includes data from over 300,000 people and counting. With extensive clinical trials expanding over 4 years, Viome focuses on analyzing mRNA (how your genes are expressed) in an effort to make connections between internal and external factors like diet, disease, exercise, stress, and pathogens and how they are affecting your body.
Viome has the power to capture, through their highly scientific and advanced testing methods, a snapshot of everything that’s happening inside your gut microbiome. Then, through the use of artificial intelligence, Viome is able to discover what foods and supplements are right for your unique body. Viome helps you to support your cellular health and gut health so that you can live a longer, healthier, and prosperous life.
The overarching mission at Viome is to prevent and reverse chronic disease by digitizing and decoding each person’s unique biology starting with the gut. To date, Viome is the only D2C (direct-to-consumer) company that analyzes mRNA to seek a full understanding of what is going on inside your body. The more people who choose Viome, the larger the database grows, which means that it becomes more powerful with all the new data, studies, publications, and research.
I recently spoke with two representatives from the Viome team who were nothing short of lit up about the amazing things the team has going on in their labs, promising me that Viome is just getting started with helping everyday people optimize their health.
Viome and mRNA
Viome is committed to taking on one of the biggest challenges known to mankind: preventing and reversing chronic conditions, cancers, and aging. With revolutionary mRNA testing that measures microbial and human gene expression, Viome is connecting the dots and patterns between an individual’s biology in order to gain precision-level insights into each individual person’s whole body health.
Using mRNA testing, Viome is able to:
- Recommend made-to-order supplements
- Support gut microbiome health
- Support immune system health
- Assist with biological aging and cellular health
- And more
By connecting the dots between our nutrition (diet) and our gut microbiome, Viome is able to help each person to overcome their issues with digestion, weight loss, sleep, skin, mental clarity, mood, and energy, all of which are common signals of low-grade inflammation directly resulting from improper nutrition.
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Why Test Your Gut Health (Microbiome)?
Millions of people suffer from chronic conditions like IBS (irritable bowel syndrome), depression, anxiety, obesity, diabetes, and more each year. Science has given us insights into the fact that our diets contribute to these diseases but can also be used to effectively reverse these conditions in their early stages.
By testing your gut microbiome, you can gain unique insights into your current health as well as what’s needed to optimize and better it. This approach to healthcare is more preventive than responsive, meaning it’s a great idea for anyone to test and understand even if you aren’t experiencing any symptoms or diseases as it can be a way to help you decode your health and set you up on a path for future optimized health and nutrition.
What Products Does Viome Offer?
Although Viome is most well-known for its Gut Intelligence Test, the brand has a range of products available to help you understand your current health and then make impactful changes to improve it.
Health Intelligence Test (Blood)
This is the world’s first at-home mRNA test that offers you a complete snapshot of your health along with actionable insights and scores to track your health for improvements.
Precision Supplements
With the results of your test(s), you will then be sent precise personalized supplement recommendations for vitamins, food extracts, minerals, herbs, amino acids, probiotics, and prebiotics. These supplements will be formulated just for you and sent directly to your doorstep each month.
Precision Probiotics + Prebiotics
Personalized probiotic and prebiotic formulas that treat your individual gut microbiome needs including things like inflammation, microbial activity, gut living health, richness and diversity, and more. As you re-test, your individual formula will be re-worked to reflect your most pertinent needs.
What Exactly Does Viome Analyze?
In short, Viome analyzes the function of the gut microbiome. They consider things like the following:
- Are you eating more protein than your gut microbiome can handle?
- Are your cells performing their functions efficiently or are they undergoing stressors from various factors?
- Is your immune system strong enough to handle invading bacteria or viruses?
- Does your biological age match your chronological age?
- How is your gut microbiome affecting your glycemic response?
- Would avoiding cruciferous vegetables be a good idea for you right now?
- Is your body getting the benefits from the berries you’re eating?
How Does Viome Gut Heath Testing Work?
Getting started on your journey will Viome is really simple and easy to execute. Here’s what the process looks like from my personal experience:
- Step 1: Decide which test you’d like to do or choose to do both and make your purchase.
- Step 2: Check your email for Viome's introductory email where you will be prompted to register your kit, set up an account, and fill out your questionnaire. Download the Viome app for easy access.
- Step 3: Receive your kit in the mail. Follow the instructions regarding how to collect your sample from home (blood, stool, or both) and send it back to Viome in the included mailer.
- Step 4: Once Viome receives your kit they will analyze your samples which can take up to 4 weeks. When completed, you will see your results and recommendations in your account (app or on desktop).
- Step 5: Review your monthly precision supplement recommendations and subscribe if you choose to do so. No obligation!
What Kind of Results Can I Expect? (How Does it Help Your Gut Microbiome?)
When Viome analyzes the genes that microbes express, they can then identify which metabolites they produce. This means that they are able to determine the role that they play in your body’s ecosystem.
Once Viome has analyzed and shared your results with you, and you begin to follow the diet and lifestyle recommendations given to you, you can then fine-tune the function of your gut microbiome to minimize the production of harmful metabolites while maximizing the production of the beneficial ones.
Most Viome customers report that they feel significantly better in the areas of digestion, bloating/gas, sleep, weight loss, energy, mental clarity, skin, and more. Oftentimes, users are surprised by the level of results and symptom relief they experience using Viome as most people don’t connect their symptoms to their diet and nutrition habits.
Who Should Try It?
Viome might be a good choice for anyone who has a desire to learn and understand more about their gut health and how it plays a role in their overall health and wellness. Whether you’re experiencing symptoms that you think might be related to your gut or not, the wealth of knowledge that will become available to you through testing will be well worth the investment.
Plus, you can feel great about trying Viome knowing that your data, while always being kept 100% private and confidential, will be used in clinical studies and trials that are aimed at improving our ability to detect and prevent chronic illness and disease.
Cost and Where to Buy
Viome’s Gut Intelligence test costs $199 and the Gut Intelligence test costs $299, however, they are often running sales and promos, so you may be able to get a test at a reduced price. Plus, I have an exclusive coupon code for you to use. Use code FHM to get $10 off.
If you choose to move forward with the customized probiotics and prebiotics, those cost $59.95 per month.
The only place to purchase a Viome Gut Health test is from their official website.
Average Rating and Real Customer Reviews
If you look around at some online company profile reviews of Viome, you may see an average rating of 3.8/5 stars with a fairly large sample size of over 1,000 reviews. The majority of people that are dissatisfied with viome is the waiting process of getting your results back from Viome's lab - many complain of the long wait. However, it's clearly stated (and respectable) that results can take upwards of 4 weeks. These are extensive tests and they require their due diligence.
On the other hand, there's people who absolutely love VIOME, thanking their company for helping them improve their gut health. I can say with full confidence that my experience has been a 9/10 stars, and I went though the entire process. It took 4 weeks to get my results back, but I was patient and it paid off.
It's clear that viome had a rough start in the beginning stages of their product launch. However, they implemented better changes, added staff, and raised funds, and now their gut health testing process is much improved. They are also on the cutting edge of disease prevention because they are taking the data and creating more solutions.
Viome Compared To Alternatives
There are many at-home health tests on the market and some are good alternatives that you may want to check out if VIOME isn't a good fit for you. The Ombre gut health test, along with BIOHM and Everlywell are probably the most comparable alternatives to VIOME.
Zoe Nutrition is another brand you may want to take a look at, along with Vessel Health wellness tracker and Lumen metabolism tracking - all have different styles of testing that don't require your stool or blood.
Some of the best personalized wellness trackers are mentioned here, and to fully optimize your wellness, you're going to want to stick with a brand you trust.
Final Thoughts On Viome From a Real User
Although my journey with Viome is just beginning, I can say with certainty that this is one of the most comprehensive and legitimately helpful wellness testing brands that I have had the pleasure of testing. The information, data, and feedback that you get from your gut health and/or Gut Intelligence test is invaluable on your journey to optimized wellness.
It’s very possible that your diet is affecting the way your body works in more ways than you think. And it’s not likely that you’ll ever be able to pinpoint the cause or an effective solution on your own, which is why Viome is so valuable. Furthermore, it’s incredibly accessible. For less than $200, you can have your sample tested and receive comprehensive, completely personalized results complete with an action plan for improving your health, nutrition, and lifestyle.
Plus, you get access to personalized probiotics and prebiotics, something that you can’t find on the store shelves. You can feel confident that the supplements you’re taking are making an actual impact on your body because they are custom-tailored to your needs. I am excited to continue on with my journey with Viome by taking the prescribed monthly supplements, so stick around for updates and be sure to join me in our Facebook group, Fit Home Healthy Life for even more!