Gut bug: it’s a term that doesn’t exactly inspire desire in people.

But gut bugs are something people should desire … in fact, they should want a great number and diversity of them.

Gut microbes may play a large role in a person’s overall health. Benefits include a lower likelihood of obesity and immune problems, among other health issues, according to recent research. And other studies have found that exercise could play a part in the diversity and amount of gut microbes.

Researchers with University College Cork, part of the National University of Ireland, wanted to see whether a diversity of gut microbes was connected with how much a person exercised. So they recruited the national rugby team of Ireland into their study. Forty members of the team agreed to be part of the study.

The researchers compared the rugby players to two other groups: a group of healthy adult men who exercised occasionally as well as men who qualified as overweight or obese.

In the athletes, the researchers found a wider array of gut microbes in greater numbers compared to the other men. The athletes also had less evidence in their blood of muscle damage and inflammation, although they trained for long hours.

Researchers identified a bacterium associated with a lower risk of obesity and inflammation they think may account for this difference between the two groups of men.

The researchers say their study is still preliminary. They don’t know exactly how exercise changes microbes and how diet might affect the microbes differently than exercise.

The researchers are conducting a follow-up study to determine how moderate exercise affects gut microbes in men and women.

But having more gut microbes could be another of many reasons to hit the gym.