Disclaimer: While this podcast episode was not sponsored by SEED, I am engaged in a paid partnership with the company whereby if you purchase their daily SYNBIOTIC (pro and pre-biotic combination) here, I make a commission at no extra cost to you. You can use the code MOMLIGHT for 15% off your first month's purchase. Now onto the show! This week I sat down with Ara Katz, mompreneur extraordinaire and a profoundly thoughtful and wise human to dive deep into the world of bacteria and particularly, our microbiome. Ara is the Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Seed, a consumer life science company pioneering applications of bacteria to improve human and planetary health. Seed (the consumer division of Seed Health, Inc.) develops broad spectrum and targeted consumer probiotics from strain-specific research validated in human clinical trials. Seed’s life science approach brings much-needed precision, efficacy and education to the rather unregulated global probiotics market. Ara’s breastfeeding experience led her to the microbiome and inspired a personal mission to bridge science and consumer health.  A serial entrepreneur, Ara previously Co-Founded and served as CMO of mobile commerce marketplace, Spring (recently sold to Shoprunner), was on the Founding Team of social commerce company, BeachMint (sold to Conde Nast), advises various companies across health, tech, and consumer, including Violet Grey, Tamara Mellon and, Stadium Goods, which was recently acquired by FarFetch and is an angel investor to companies like Mahmee (women’s health startup) and Hong Kong-based ALLIES.  Ara has been a fellow at the MIT Media Lab’s Center for Future Storytelling and CCA’s Design MBA program. She was named in Marie Claire’s “The New Guard: The 50 Most Influential Women in America”, listed on Business Insider’s “Silicon Alley Top 100” and “36 Rockstar Women in NYC Tech”, and was recently included in Create + Cultivate’s 100 List for STEM. Ara was the Founding Board Member of International Non-profit, I AM THAT GIRL, a community and movement for any badass young woman who is looking to find her purpose, lift her voice, and make positive change in her world.  She lives in Venice, California with her husband and three-year-old son, Pax–without whom Seed wouldn’t exist. Oh, and she’s the proud owner of several tardigrades who now live at Harvard’s Museum of Natural History.  You can follow Ara on instagram @arakatz @seed @seeduniversity