Why Probiotics Are the Greatest Supplement and 3 Tips For Buying the Best
Following up on my blog post titled “Why Supplement Brand Matters”, this post is dedicated to picking the best probiotic supplement.
So what is a probiotic?
A probiotic is a live, healthy bacterium. Your body naturally has healthy bacteria that protect you from harm, but your body can also develop bad bacteria that do cause harm. The bacterial habitat in your body is known as the microbiome and when supported it can do wonders for your health!
Why do I need probiotics?
Your body is born with lots of good bacteria, but overtime this good bacteria is depleted with antibiotic use, medication, poor diet, inflammation, infection etc. When the good bacteria disappears, there is more space in your gut for bad bacteria to adhere and cause health concerns. The goal of probiotic supplementation is to replenish your body with good, protective bacteria, get rid of the bad bacteria, and take up lots of space so there’s no room for bad bacteria to adhere (picture your gut like a parking garage that needs all the spaces full). You may have also heard that the gut is the “second brain”. A huge component of your nervous system (and immune system) is in your gut, so when bad bacteria starts to populate and affect your digestive health, it also affects your mental and immune health.
What about for fertility?
For fertility specifically, the “EMMA” is a uterine biopsy that assesses the microbiome of the uterus. We expect the uterus to be made up of 99% lactobacillus bacteria, if it is not, then the receptivity of the uterus to an embryo is compromised and you need to take the right probiotic!
Can I get probiotics from my food? What about Jamie Lee Curtis the dancing Activia lady?
There are many foods that have naturally occurring probiotics, like: yogurt, kefir, kombucha, sauerkraut, kimchi….well essentially anything fermented. I’m sure you’ve seen the yogurt ads of Jamie Lee Curtis belly dancing after eating probiotic yogurt and gone to the bathroom! Sure yogurt has probiotics, but it also has lots of sugar. It’s fantastic to include these probiotic foods in your diet, but if you’re looking to up the anti and achieve a greater therapeutic benefit then read further.
Probiotic supplements can be used very effectively for, but not limited to:
· bloating/ gas
· digestive pain
· constipation
· diarrhea
· nausea
· anxiety
· low mood
· frequent colds/flus
· skin concerns
· vaginal health
· bladder health
· kidney health
· liver detox
· hormonal imbalance
· weight loss
· uterine receptivity and embryo transfer
Hopefully I’ve now convinced you that probiotics rule, so how do you pick one? If you read my last blog you know that supplement brand matters, and it’s not any different when it comes to probiotics. So here we go…
3 Tips for Picking the Best Probiotic Supplement
1. Take a look at the CFUs (colony forming units)
This indicates the number of bacterial units in the supplement. Different areas of your digestive system have different amounts of probiotic bacteria (you already know that there’s lots of bacteria in your gut!) For example, your colon has more good bacteria than your mouth (up to 99 billion more to be exact). This means that in order to improve the health of your colon and replenish the bacteria, you need a higher number of CFUs than replenishing the healthy bacteria in the mouth. Most health concerns come from a depletion of good bacteria in the small intestine and colon, so you need a higher number of CFUs.
Quick tip– the typical maintenance dose of probiotic for general health is 10-20 billion CFU
2. Take a look at the bacterial strain(s)
It’s pretty simple: different strains have different therapeutic uses, because different strains of bacteria are found in different parts of your body. For example, if you experience chronic urinary tract infections, Lactobacillus rhamnosus and Lactobacillus reuteri are the well-researched probiotic strains. For irritable bowel syndrome you may want to consider Lactobacillus plantarum 299v, and for C. difficile Saccharomyces boulardii is commonly used. And the list goes on!
Quick tip– Multi-strain probiotics, as the name suggests, have multiple probiotic strains. More strains = greater likelihood you’ll get the strain you need. Combining probiotic strains also has a synergistic effect, meaning they work together to improve your gut health. Sometimes it’s more effective to have a whole team instead of just one guy.
3. Take a look for Prebiotics (aka FOS) and Dairy
Okay what? You read it right; there are probiotics and PREbiotics. PREbiotics are the food source used to fuel the PRObiotics. FOS (fructooliosaccharide) is a form of prebiotic that is added to certain probiotic supplements. For some people, like those with irritable bowel syndrome, FOS can cause bloating and digestive upset and should be avoided. Finally, some brands of probiotics grow their bacteria on a dairy medium (because it’s a sugary fuel!) if you’re sensitive to dairy this is important for you to know.
Quick tip– make sure you read labels thoroughly.
So Now What?
If you are experiencing the symptoms I’ve discussed in this post, you want to belly dance after going to the bathroom, or if you’re interested in what probiotics can do for you book an appointment with us!
References
Borchert, D., Sheridan, L., Papatsoris, A., Faruquz, Z., Barua, J. M., Junaid, I., … & Buchholz, N. (2008). Prevention and treatment of urinary tract infection with probiotics: Review and research perspective. Indian Journal of Urology, 24(2), 139.
Simren M, Syrous A, Lindh A, Abrahamsson H. Effects of Lactobacillus plantarum 299V on symptoms and rectal sensitivity in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)—a randomized double blind controlled trial. Gastroenterology. 2006;130(1):T2043.
Hickson, M. (2011). Probiotics in the prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhoea and Clostridium difficile infection. Therapeutic advances in gastroenterology, 1756283X11399115.
Foster, J. A., & Neufeld, K. A. M. (2013). Gut–brain axis: how the microbiome influences anxiety and depression. Trends in neurosciences, 36(5), 305-312.
Million, M., & Raoult, D. (2013). The role of the manipulation of the gut microbiota in obesity. Current infectious disease reports, 15(1), 25-30.
Anders, H. J., Andersen, K., & Stecher, B. (2013). The intestinal microbiota, a leaky gut, and abnormal immunity in kidney disease. Kidney international, 83(6), 1010-1016.
Kelly, D., Conway, S., & Aminov, R. (2005). Commensal gut bacteria: mechanisms of immune modulation. Trends in immunology, 26(6), 326-333.
