What About Kefir Yoghurt Drinks
As with other fermented foods, kefir a traditional Eastern fermented milk product available as both a drink and yoghurt also has limited clinical evidence behind it. It’s hard to measure exactly what concentration of which bacteria each batch contains.
Kefir products usually contain a broader range of probiotic bacteria than yoghurt-based drinks, though.
As a milk-based product, it can be high in sugar .
Probiotics And Prebiotics: What’s The Difference
Probiotics;
These are live microorganisms such as bacteria, yeasts and fungi which in adequate amounts may have health benefits.;
Studies have shown they can improve digestion, help protect against disease and enhance immune function. Strains of lactobacillus and bifidobacterium bacteria are the most commonly used probiotics as they can survive the passage to the gut.;
Probiotics are most widely available as dietary supplements in tablet, capsule and powder forms or as a component in yoghurts and fermented dairy drinks.
Prebiotics;
These are non-digestible food ingredients that can increase the activity of select “good” bacteria.;
Prebiotics naturally occur in bananas, asparagus, leeks, onions, garlic, chicory and wholegrains like wheat, rye, barley and oats.;
Savvy marketers spruik their benefits in foods including breads and infant formulas.
What about synbiotics?;
These are products that contain both prebiotics and probiotics.
Probiotics Could Help Prevent Food Allergies
Probiotics may also help prevent food allergies, though more research is needed. For example, a review published in October 2015 in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology suggested probiotics may help prevent eczema, which is a risk factor for food allergies, in children when administered to pregnant or breastfeeding mothers. Important to note, though, is infant eczema doesnt always signal a food allergy, and could simply be caused by dry skin or a seasonal allergy.
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Provitalize Best Weight Natural Weight Management Probiotic
The product is made of six herbal components that enhance its effectiveness in the body. These components include the Lactobacillus gasseri, which boosts the body’s immune function, helps fight allergies and has many other benefits. Bacterium Breeve lowers the overall fat mass, Bacterium Lactis reduces the BMI, total body cholesterol that could lead to cardiac problems, and breaks down low-density lipoproteins. Tumeric root extract helps reduce inflammation, and Moringa leaf is rich in Vitamins E & C, promoting good brain health. Bioperine improves nutrient absorption b 30%, and sunflower lecithin enhances the effectiveness of the formula. e Delayed-release capsules protect the probiotics from stomach acid effects.
The Provitalize capsules work to ease hot flashes that may occur during menopause, manage to bloat, energize the body, improve gut and digestive health, and improve sleep at night. The capsules work effectively to minimize the side effects of menopause in women, leaving you feeling lighter and energized.
Can I Use Probiotics To Help With Medical Conditions
There is currently a large amount of research happening around the idea of what probiotics can do for your body. Even though there are a lot of possibly positive outcomes, researchers are still working to find definitive answers about how probiotics can help with various conditions.
However, there are some medical conditions where probiotics may help. This can vary between people meaning that what works for one person may not work for another. These can also vary based on the certain probiotic that is taken.
Some of the conditions that might be helped by increasing the amount of probiotics in your body include:
- Upper respiratory infections .
- .
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Side Effects Of Prebiotics
Since most prebiotics are naturally found in many everyday foods that people regularly eat anyway, taking prebiotic supplements is not very different from eating such foods. So the side effects of taking prebiotics resemble what we might call the side effects of eating.
As with any food, moderation is essential. Overeating of anything could overwhelm your digestive system, leading to bloating, constipation, or general digestive discomfort. Likewise, consuming vast quantities of prebiotics could lead to any of these or similar symptoms. In any case, consuming more significant amounts of probiotics does not necessarily give you larger beneficial effects, so you might as well not overdo it.
What Do Probiotics Do Exactly
Theres still a lot that scientists dont understand about probiotics, but studies so far have identified a few functional uses of probiotics, including:
- Promoting the health and maintenance of our digestive tracts cell lining
- Supporting immunity
- Managing inflammation
With these findings, researchers are beginning to conduct more expansive studies on the microbiome. They suspect that if probiotics play definitive roles in these body functions, they may also play a role in diseases and conditions that affect digestive health, immunity, and systemic inflammation.
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Answers To Frequently Asked Questions About Probiotics
I dont like fermented foods. Whats another way to get probiotics?
A diet high in fiber, which is a prebiotic, may promote probiotic growth in the gut. You can also take a probiotic supplement with clearance from your healthcare team.
Is it just as good to take probiotic supplements as it is to eat foods with probiotics?
In general, the body benefits most from consuming probiotics via food, which often also contains beneficial nutrients. But if youre using probiotics to treat a disease or illness, a supplement that contains a higher number of strains may be more effective, noted a paper published in September 2017 the journal Biochemistry & Pharmacology.
If I take a probiotic supplement, is it best to take it before, during, or after a meal?
Youll reap the most benefits from probiotics if you take them 30 minutes before a meal or while eating. Also important: taking them with a food or drink that contains some amount of fat, because probiotics are fat soluble, meaning fat helps the body properly absorb them.
Can a person take in too many probiotics?
What is the best probiotic for your health?
Simply put, researchers havent identified one yet. Most of the studies surround bacterial strains of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium and the yeast strain Saccharomyces boulardii. Its also likely that various strains are best for different conditions.
Is it better to choose probiotic supplements that are refrigerated?
Should I always take probiotics when on an antibiotic?
Probiotics Benefits: How Do Scientists Think These Microorganisms Help The Body
This living for life nutrient is the foundation of our health. A healthy microbiome may help in preventing and treating diseases in the areas of digestive health, certain types of cancer, oral disease, food allergies, and eczema.
But first, know that probiotic supplements may affect everyone differently, and for older people in particular, their touted benefits are unproven. In fact, the research on how beneficial probiotics are varies depending on the disease in question.
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Take Probiotics Before Bedtime
Taking probiotics immediately before bedtime on an empty stomach may help to reduce gas and bloating. Your gut is relatively inactive at night, but probiotics can produce gas when combined with certain foods. Taking food on an empty stomach ensures that the probiotics dont have any obstacles in the way, which also allows more of the live bacteria to reach your large intestines.14
Probiotics And Gut Health
The best case for probiotic therapy has been in the treatment of diarrhea. Controlled trials have shown that;Lactobacillus GG;can shorten the course of infectious diarrhea in infants and children . Although studies are limited and data are inconsistent, two large reviews, taken together, suggest that probiotics reduce antibiotic-associated diarrhea by 60%, when compared with a placebo.
More common than diarrhea is the opposite problem constipation. In a search for studies on the benefits of probiotics in treating constipation, researchers found that probiotics slowed “gut transit time” by 12.4 hours, increases the number of weekly bowel movements by 1.3, and helped to soften stools, making them easier to pass. But the jury is still out on specific recommendations when it comes to the benefits of;probiotics for constipation.
Probiotic therapy may also help people with Crohn’s disease and irritable bowel syndrome. Clinical trial results are mixed, but several small studies suggest that certain probiotics may help maintain remission of ulcerative colitis and prevent relapse of Crohn’s disease and the recurrence of pouchitis . Because these disorders are so frustrating to treat, many people are giving probiotics a try before all the evidence is in for the particular strains they’re using. More research is needed to find out which strains work best for what conditions.
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Some Ingredients May Cause Adverse Reactions
People with allergies or intolerances should read the labels of probiotic supplements carefully, since they might contain ingredients they could react to.
For example, some of the supplements contain allergens such as dairy, egg or soy.
These ingredients should be avoided by anyone who is allergic, as they may trigger an allergic reaction. If necessary, read labels carefully to avoid these ingredients .
Similarly, yeast-based probiotics should not be taken by those with yeast allergies. Instead, a bacteria-based probiotic should be used .
Milk sugar, or lactose, is also used in many probiotic supplements .
While studies suggest that most people with lactose intolerance can tolerate up to 400 mg of lactose in medications or supplements, there have been case reports of adverse effects from probiotics (
39 ).
Some people experience gas and bloating when consuming synbiotics. Those who experience these side effects may want to select a supplement that does not contain prebiotics .
Summary
Probiotic supplements can contain allergens, lactose or prebiotic fibers that may cause adverse reactions in some people. These ingredients can be avoided by reading labels.
Top Prebiotic Supplements In 2021
Although obviously, all prebiotic products claim to support gut health to some extent, they differ regarding how many of the different prebiotics they contain and whether or not they contain various complementary ingredients. But so many different types of prebiotics can be found on the shelves today that finding the right one for you can be a daunting task.
Thats why we reviewed fourteen of the top prebiotics keep reading, and youll find out more about how we ranked the different products, the clinical benefits of prebiotics, possible side effects, dosage guidelines, and frequently asked questions.
Peak BioBoost
At $49.95 for 8.36 oz/237g, this product is not one of the cheapest prebiotics out there but it is one of the most popular. It is presented as a powder that can easily be mixed with water or juice or sprinkled over your morning muesli.
While other prebiotics often contain only one fiber source , Peak BioBoost includes four. In addition, this supplement contains several other nutrients, all of which help with general gut health and bowel function thereby facilitating the maintenance of a healthy weight and optimal energy utilization. It is also one of the few prebiotics to be formulated by a doctor.
HyperBiotics Prebiotic
Daily Greens
In addition to being great for gut health, this supplement can help boost energy, burn fat, and provide immune support. It truly deserves the designation superfood.
1MD Complete Probiotics Platinum
Gundry MD Prebio Thrive
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Probiotics To Support Brain Health
There is a strong connection between gut and brain health.
The bacteria in your colon digest and ferment fiber into short-chain fatty acids that nourish the gut. Research has shown that these compounds may also benefit the brain and nervous system .
A review of 38 studies on animals and humans found that various probiotics helped improve symptoms of anxiety, depression, autism, obsessive-compulsive disorder and poor memory .
The strains most commonly used in these studies were Bifidobacterium longum, Bifidobacterium breve, Bifidobacterium infantis, Lactobacillus helveticus and Lactobacillus rhamnosus.
Probiotics appear to be effective for both generalized anxiety and anxiety related to specific causes (
50 ).
Specific bacterial strains that seem to be effective at lowering cholesterol levels include Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium longum and Lactobacillus reuteri.
An analysis of 14 studies found that probiotics led to an average reduction in LDL cholesterol, a slight increase in HDL and a decrease in triglycerides .
There are probably several processes responsible for these effects on LDL cholesterol, including changes in fat metabolism and decreased absorption of cholesterol in the gut .
Probiotics may also help lower blood pressure.
One review of nine controlled studies found a modest reduction in blood pressure among those who took probiotics. However, only treatment longer than eight weeks at doses higher than 10 billion CFU per day had significant effects (
Dr Tobias Deep Immune Probiotics
The probiotic blend offered by Dr. Tobias includes five different types of bacteria which total to a bit under five billion colony-forming units.;
The capsules are another major selling point; Dr. Tobias claims that their capsules resist the digestion of the stomach acid, making it so that more bacteria make their way into the intestinal tract instead of being destroyed by stomach acid.
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Natures Bounty Ultra Probiotic 10
The ubiquitous and trusted Natures Bounty brand delivers when it comes to probiotics. Their Probiotic 10 supplement contains 20 billion colony forming units and, as the name suggests, ten different strains of bacteria.;
The capsules are vegetarian, and there arent any extraneous ingredients included either, so this ones a very solid choice.
The Best Probiotic And Prebiotic Supplements For 2021 Are:
- Best overall Garden of Life raw microbiome ultimate care: £30.79, Gardenoflife.co.uk
- Best for women Wellgard Vitaflora 20 billion CFU probiotics for women: £12.74, Wellgard.co.uk
- Best for kids So Perf Kids Peruvian cacao and coconut bars: £26.20, Soperf.com
- Best for taking probiotics with other vitamins Indi body: £45, Indisupplements.com
- Best for when on a course of antibiotics Bio-Kult boosted: £24.98, Bio-kult.com
- Best for combining prebiotics and probiotics The Nue Co prebiotic + probiotic: £45,Thenueco.com
- Best for people with digestive system problems Inessa advanced biotic complex: £38.99, Inessawellness.com
- Best for people with allergies Performance Lab prebiotic, one month supply: £29, Performancelab.com
- Best for supporting mental wellbeing Kalla for relief, 30-day supply: £49, Kalla.com
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What Are Prebiotics And Synbiotics
The prebiotic comes before and helps the probiotic, and then the two can combine to have a synergistic effect, known as synbiotics. A prebiotic is actually a nondigestible carbohydrate that acts as food for the probiotics and bacteria in your gut. The definition of the effect of prebiotics is the selective stimulation of growth and/or activity of one or a limited number of microbial genus/species in the gut microbiota that confer health benefits to the host. The health benefits have been suggested to include acting as a remedy for gastrointestinal complications such as enteritis, constipation, and irritable bowel disease; prevention and treatment of various cancers; decreasing allergic inflammation; treatment of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease , and fighting immune deficiency diseases. There has also been research showing that the dietary intake of particular food products with a prebiotic effect has been shown, especially in adolescents, but also tentatively in postmenopausal women, to increase calcium absorption as well as bone calcium accretion and bone mineral density. The benefits for obesity and type 2 diabetes are growing as recent data, both from experimental models and from human studies, have shown particular food products with prebiotics have influences on energy homeostasis, satiety regulation, and body weight gain.
What A Probiotic Supplement Can Do For You
Probiotic bacteria do important jobs to keep your body functioning at its best. The last several years have seen an explosion of research on the importance of the microbiome and the many health benefits associated with a balanced one. Probiotic supplements offer a way to help maintain this balance, says NYU Langone Health gastroenterologist Roshini Rajapaksa, M.D. In other words, they might serve as a sort of insurance to support your overall health, particularly if you dont eat a lot of fiber or fermented foods.
As for addressing specific health issues? Recently, the American Gastroenterological Association approved the use of probiotic supplements to prevent nasty bacterial infections like C. difficile in adults taking antibiotics. Just one round of antibiotics can negatively alter your gut microbiome for up to a year, because good bacteria are killed off when the illness-causing bacteria are killed, says Frances Largeman-Roth, R.D.N., nutrition expert and author of Smoothies & Juices: Prevention Healing Kitchen. Taking a probiotic supplement can help restore the balance of good bacteria in the gut.
A growing body of evidence also suggests that probiotics can play a role in improving digestion and decreasing bloating , improving immune function, promoting healthy blood sugar, and fighting acne and skin inflammation. Some studies have even demonstrated a link between probiotics and mood disorders like depression.
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Risks And Side Effects
All probiotics arent created equally. Not all strains have beneficial effects, and its important to do your research before starting a new supplement.
And, as always, all new supplement regimens should be conducted under the supervision of a medical professional.
Probiotic side effects can sometimes include diarrhea if you take too much too fast. You can start off with a smaller amount, like one tablespoon of kefir or one probiotic capsule a day, and work your way up if youre just getting into eating probiotic foods or taking dietary supplements.
One very rare side effect of probiotics seen in cancer patients is sepsis. This is an extremely rare occurrence.
Overall, most studies have found that probiotics are associated with very few probiotics side effects and a large number of benefits.