FLORA & NORMAL FLORA

What Is Flora?

In any given city there are those who live there permanently and those that are just passing through. It's interesting to note that on the human body, the same basic concept occurs with respect to flora, the collection of microorganisms inhabiting a person. There are two types of flora and normal flora.

Sunflower

     For example, sunflower plant. Plant life on the earth can be distinguished from each other in a number of ways. The simplest is to divide on the basis of region. Plants that grow specifically in the mountains will be very different from those that grow in the desert.

Normal Flora

Normal (resident) flora are microorganisms that are always present on or in a person and usually do not cause any disease. These are like the permanent residents of a city; they're not just passing through! Depending on what part of the body we're talking about, the normal flora can vary. For instance, on the skin, normal flora is made up of bacteria such as staphylococci. In the mouth, bacteria called streptococci can be found.

E-coli

     Just like the normal residents of a city like to keep their city in order, resident flora typically do not cause problems to the person. However, just like some people take advantage of a city and its residents when it's weak by committing crimes, some resident flora are potential opportunistic pathogens. What that big term means is that these microorganisms lay low and cause no trouble when the person is healthy.

     However, as soon as they sense the person is sick with another serious problem, they strike to cause a disease of their own. For example, E-coli is a consistent resident of the small intestine.