Consider the statement: “The use of antibiotic tablets destabilises the gut bacteria.” Decide which of the following assumptions is or are implicit in this statement.

Introduction / Context:
This question examines your ability to uncover hidden assumptions behind a scientific sounding statement. The statement claims that the use of antibiotic tablets destabilises the gut bacteria. To interpret this, you must decide whether the existence of friendly gut bacteria or the central importance of gut health for overall health is being taken for granted. Assumption questions often appear in logical reasoning sections to test careful reading and inference.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Statement: The use of antibiotic tablets destabilises the gut bacteria.
• Assumption I: There are friendly (beneficial) bacteria in the gut.
• Assumption II: Gut health is foremost for overall health.
• Task: Decide which assumptions are implicit in the given statement.

Concept / Approach:
When we say that a medicine destabilises gut bacteria, there is a subtle suggestion that this effect matters and that at least some of those bacteria play a positive or balanced role. If gut bacteria were entirely harmful, the wording would usually emphasise that antibiotics help remove harmful organisms, not destabilise the gut. Thus, the presence of some normal or friendly gut flora is a natural underlying assumption. On the other hand, the statement does not explicitly compare gut health with overall health; it simply talks about what antibiotics do locally in the gut. Saying that gut health is foremost for overall health goes beyond what is required for the statement to be meaningful.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Focus on the key phrase destabilises the gut bacteria. This suggests that there is an existing balance of bacteria that can be disturbed.Step 2: For there to be a meaningful balance, we must assume the presence of bacteria that have some normal or beneficial role in the gut environment. This is captured in Assumption I, which talks about friendly bacteria in the gut.Step 3: If there were no friendly or normal bacteria at all, then destabilising them would not be a concern in the way described; the statement would likely be framed differently.Step 4: Therefore, Assumption I is implicit: the author assumes there are gut bacteria whose state or balance matters.Step 5: Assumption II says that gut health is foremost for overall health. The original statement only says that antibiotics destabilise gut bacteria, but it does not claim that this effect dominates or determines overall health.Step 6: The statement would still make sense even if gut health were only moderately important or one of many factors affecting overall health. Thus, Assumption II is not strictly necessary for the statement.Step 7: Hence, only Assumption I is implicit.

Verification / Alternative check:
Imagine a scenario in which scientists have discovered a complex community of bacteria in the gut, some of which are beneficial and help digestion. In that context, it is meaningful to warn that antibiotics can destabilise this community. Now imagine another scenario where gut health is not the single foremost factor in overall health but one of many influences. The warning about antibiotics destabilising gut bacteria still makes complete sense. This shows that Assumption I is required but Assumption II is not.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

• Option a is wrong because it wrongly includes Assumption II, which is not necessary.
• Option c is wrong because Assumption II alone is not enough and is not required at all.
• Option d is wrong because it ignores the clear need to assume the existence of a meaningful gut bacterial community.
• Option e introduces an extra idea about truth values that is not the focus of the question.

Common Pitfalls:

• Over interpreting the statement and bringing in general health claims that the statement does not actually make.
• Missing the subtle suggestion that gut bacteria form a balanced community and therefore must include friendly types.
• Thinking that any health related statement must automatically assume that one factor is foremost for overall health.

Final Answer:
Only assumption I is implicit: there are friendly or beneficial bacteria in the gut whose balance can be destabilised by antibiotic tablets.