What are probiotics? What are the health benefits? What are the sources, where can I get them in my diet? Many health-conscious consumers are asking themselves these questions these days, as probiotics become the latest trends in being healthy. Your digestive system, comprised of the stomach, the intestines, and the gastrointestinal tract, is key to your health.
Your digestive system is comprised of the stomach, the intestines, and the gastrointestinal tract and important to your health. A healthy digestive system is a main key to your overall health, and a healthy way to have a healthy gut is to create good gut bacteria.
This is where the body takes all the nutrients from your food and puts it throughout the body and also breaks down the waste, the toxins and eliminates that. If the digestive system isn’t working right some of these toxic wastes will also be absorbed into your body.
Good Gut Bacteria vs. Bad Gut Bacteria
There are billions of microscopic bacteria in the digestive system, some are good and some are bad. A healthy digestive system needs more of the good bacteria than the bad. How do you make sure that your digestive system has more good than bad bacteria?
You need to feed the good bacteria what it wants in order for it to flourish and avoid the foods that the bad bacteria like, sugar for one. You need to eat the right foods in order to create good gut bacteria.
Healthy Foods Build Good Probiotics
Probiotics are good gut bacteria. When you eat probiotics you are basically eating friendly bacteria. Probiotics are good bacteria. What makes a good probiotic or a good yogurt? There are live bacteria in good yogurt just like in your digestive system. The two main probiotics to look for in a healthy yogurt are:
You will probably see other cultures or bacteria listed as well. It is important that the yogurt says on its label live active cultures or living yogurt cultures.
Otherwise, the good bacteria in the yogurt might not even be worth eating. If you don’t eat dairy, there is also yogurt made from soy.
The better probiotic supplements can have as many as 10 different strains of bacteria. Some have only a couple of bacteria strains and others have just one strain of bacteria for specific reasons.
Clinical studies have shown that probiotics and yogurts are helpful with the following medical conditions:
- L acidophilus
- L actobacillus bulgaricus
- Streptococcus thermophilus
You will probably see other cultures or bacteria listed as well. It is important that the yogurt says on its label live active cultures or living yogurt cultures.
Otherwise, the good bacteria in the yogurt might not even be worth eating. If you don’t eat dairy, there is also yogurt made from soy.
The better probiotic supplements can have as many as 10 different strains of bacteria. Some have only a couple of bacteria strains and others have just one strain of bacteria for specific reasons.
Health Benefits of Probiotics
Clinical studies have shown that probiotics and yogurts are helpful with the following medical conditions:
- Strengthens the immune system
- Enhance natural killer cell activity
- Helps fight pathogens and harmful bacteria
- Promotes good digestive health
- A great way to get calcium and vitamin D for lactose intolerant people
- Helps prevent diarrhea
- Relieves and prevents constipation
- Relives Bloating
- Heal and prevent Leaky Gut
Why Do We Need Probiotics?
We might need to supplement probiotics because there are numerous things that can destroy the good gut bacteria and cause bad gut bacteria to grow. Things that damage our gut microbiome include:
- Eating too much sugar benefits the bad bacteria
- Antibiotics, if you have to take antibiotics for any reason, they will kill the good (along with the bad) bacteria. It’s always good to take a probiotic after a course of antibiotics
- Poor nutrition
- Stress
- Aging can reduce the good bacteria
- Alcohol
- Chemical herbicides and obesogens
Food Sources of Probiotics
There are foods that you should include in your diet as often as possible to increase the good gut bacteria like:
Probiotics and yogurt are very good for our digestive systems, and the healthier our digestive systems are, the healthier we are. That is why there are so many healthy benefits to good yogurt and probiotics.
About the Author
Sam Montana is a certified Food Over Medicine instructor from the Wellness Forum Health Center and certified in optimal nutrition from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Copyright © Sam Montana 07 December 2008-2019
- Wheatgrass, spirulina and chlorella
- Cultured dairy products, including Greek yogurt, natural cheese, and kefir
- Miso, tempeh, and other fermented soy products
- Sauerkraut
Probiotics and yogurt are very good for our digestive systems, and the healthier our digestive systems are, the healthier we are. That is why there are so many healthy benefits to good yogurt and probiotics.
About the Author
Sam Montana is a certified Food Over Medicine instructor from the Wellness Forum Health Center and certified in optimal nutrition from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Copyright © Sam Montana 07 December 2008-2019
