Probiotics 101 – What Probiotics Are, Reasons The Body Needs Probiotics, And Good Sources Of Probiotics

This article discusses what probiotics are, why they are beneficial to us, where and how you can obtain them, and a few caveats.

What Are Probiotics?

If you’re not familiar with probiotics, then let’s start with a simple definition, taken from the Mayo Clinic’s website, of what they are:

“Probiotics are foods or supplements that contain live microorganisms intended to maintain or improve the ‘good’ bacteria (normal microflora) in the body.”

(Note that these are not the same as prebiotics, which are what the probiotic bacteria feed on.)

They are usually bacteria, but some are yeasts, and there are trillions of them, comprising hundreds or even thousands of varieties (e.g. Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium), living inside your gut.

When people hear “bacteria”, they often automatically assume that they are all bad, but this isn’t the case – there are “good” bacteria too, ones that are essential for our well-being, and these are the ones usually called probiotics.

Benefits Of Probiotics

Probiotics can help with:

1. Antibiotic Resistance. Overuse of antibiotics is rampant, and the problem is that bacteria can and do become resistant to antibiotics – remarkably quickly in some cases.

   Antibiotics, while they can be effective, kill all bacteria – not just the “bad” ones, which means a course of this type of medication can leave you with an impaired microbiome (i.e. a community of microorganisms). Probiotics can help restore balance in your gut flora, countering the negative effects of those antibiotics.

2. Blood Pressure. For people that already have high blood pressure, probiotics have been shown to reduce it.
3. Colic. One study, released by the American Academy of Pediatrics, found that one particular strain, Lactobacillus reuteri, can help reduce colic and the consequent crying in infants. (Giving probiotics to babies makes even more sense if they are bottle-fed, because it’s been shown that breastmilk can contain natural probiotics).
4. Cognitive Functions. Some studies have shown probiotics can boost memory.
5. Diabetes. Promising research suggests that probiotics can help reduce the incidence of type 2 diabetes.
6. Digestive Health. A healthy bacterial balance in your gut can help protect against a variety of digestive problems, including constipation, Crohn’s disease, diarrhoea, ulcerative colitis, and maybe even celiac disease.
7. Food Allergies. When your gut flora are out of balance, you can develop what is commonly referred to as leaky gut syndrome. This is when substances that should never enter the bloodstream (e.g. foreign proteins) find a way through the intestinal wall.

   It was demonstrated back in the early 1900s by Dr Charles Richet that injecting proteins (including from food) into the bloodstream can cause food allergies, including anaphylaxis.

   Probiotics, by maintaining overall gut health and keeping the intestinal wall impermeable (as it should be), can prevent this passage of foreign substances into the bloodstream, thus reducing or preventing food allergies.

8. Inflammation. Studies have shown that taking probiotics can help reduce chronic inflammation.
9. Immune System. Amazingly, it is believed that over 75% of our immune system is located in our gut, so keeping your gut healthy is one way to help keep your immune system healthy too – and probiotics can do just that.
10. Mental Health Problems. Research has confirmed the connection between your gut and your brain, and that the majority of serotonin, which is a vital neurotransmitter, is actually created in your gut too.

    So, it shouldn’t come as a surprise to learn that an unhealthy gut can cause mental health issues – which is why probiotics can help (e.g. reducing symptoms of anxiety, depression, and stress) because it can restore your gut health.

11. Nutrient Bioavailability. One variety of lactobacillus has been shown to increase the bioavailability of calcium, phosphorus and zinc, and others help in the creation of vitamins B2 and B12.
12. Respiratory Tract Infections. These are particularly common in children these days, but probiotics have been shown to reduce the incidence of these RTIs.
13. Serious Diseases In Infants. Studies have concluded that giving pregnant women certain probiotics (e.g. L. plantarum) can reduce the chances of their children developing two potentially lethal conditions – necrotizing enterocolitis and neonatal sepsis. A very recent study also showed they can help reduce the risk of preeclampsia.
14. Skin. Maybe because of their inflammation-reducing properties, probiotics can help with skin health too (e.g. acne and eczema).
15. Vaginal Health. Since a woman’s vagina is similar to the intestines, in that it has its own ecosystem of bacteria (again, both good and bad), then imbalances in these bacteria (e.g. because of birth control pills) can be repaired through use of probiotics (especially strains of Lactobacillus).

Other potential benefits of probiotics, where the research is still in progress, suggest that they can help with:

• dental health
• kidney stones
• Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease, which affects over 80 million Americans and which can be a precursor for cirrhosis
• rheumatoid arthritis (which make sense if probiotics can help reduce inflammation)
• urinary tract infections

Conversely, if probiotics and a healthy microbiome can help with all of the above issues, then it’s also the case that dysbiosis (i.e. a microbial imbalance) can lead to many of those same problems.

Which Probiotics Should You Take?

This depends on why you are taking them.

If you just want to give your gut flora an overall boost, and are not taking them for any specific reason, then you should be fine with the two most common strains I mentioned above, i.e. Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium.

However, if you need to take probiotics for a specific reason, then you need to consult a trained medical professional who will be able to advise you on the most appropriate strain(s) for your situation.

Sources Of Probiotics – Fermented Foods

Fermented foods include any of the following, although this is far from an exhaustive list:

• Buttermilk (the traditional type, not cultured)
• Kefir
• Kimchi
• Kombucha
• Miso
• Natto
• Olives (provided they are fermented – not regular olives)
• Pickles (provided they’re made with brine and not vinegar)
• Raw-Milk Cheese (i.e. made from unpasteurized milk) such as Fontina, Maytag Blue, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and Roquefort)
• Sauerkraut
• Tempeh
• Yoghourt

What About Prebiotics?

Yes, your diet should include a variety of prebiotics too, to help feed your “good” bacteria and allow them to reproduce.

Good sources of prebiotics, which are typically high in fibre, include:

• apple skins
• asparagus
• bananas
• barley
• beans
• burdock root
• chicory root
• cocoa
• dandelion greens
• flaxseeds
• garlic
• Jerusalem artichokes
• jicama root
• konjac root (aka elephant yams)
• leeks
• oats
• onions
• seaweed
• wheat bran
• yacon root

Sources Of Probiotics – Supplements

If, for whatever reason, the foods in the above list do not work for you, then your second option is to buy probiotic supplements.

However, there are a few precautions you need to take to ensure you buy something that will work rather than an expensive placebo:

1. Brand. Look for brands that are popular and where there are plenty of good reviews, and look for evidence that they follow Good Manufacturing Practices.
2. CFU Count. CFU is short for Colony-Forming Unit, and is the basic measure of the number of viable bacterial cells in a sample. Ideally, you should aim for 10 – 50 billion CFU (or half that number for children).
3. Live Cultures. You should look for probiotics that say they contain live and active cultures, not just active cultures. Some supplements are heat-treated, which means they can kill the beneficial bacteria before they ever enter your body.
4. Minimal Inactive Ingredients. Some companies use fillers and other inactive substances (e.g. corn starch, sugars), which are unnecessary (for your health, not for their profits).
5. Prebiotics. Some supplements include both prebiotics and probiotics (which are sometimes called synbiotics), which means you’re getting the best of both worlds in the one product.
6. Shelf-Stable. Probiotics that are labelled “shelf-stable” are more likely to make it through your stomach to your intestines, where they can do their work.
7. Strain Diversity. If you’re buying probiotics for overall health rather than for specific needs, then the more strains the product contains, the better. At a minimum, look for Lactobacillus acidophilus and plantarum, and Bifidobacterium lactis, longum and bifidum.

Side-Effects

Probiotics are generally recognized as being safe.

However, when you first start taking probiotics (either food-based or supplements), you may temporarily experience any of the following for a short period while your body adjusts:

• Bloating
• Flatulence
• Redness and swelling (caused by an increase in histamine production)

In rare cases, probiotics can enter your bloodstream (e.g. if you have leaky gut syndrome) and cause more serious damage.

This is why, as with all medications, including supplements, you should always consult your doctor first.

How Soon Will You See Benefits?

Provided you take your probiotics regularly and as directed, most people start to see benefits after a couple of weeks or so.

However, as with all drugs and supplements, not everybody is the same, so it may take longer (or, in a few cases, shorter).

Why Your Probiotic Supplements May Not Be Working

If you’ve been taking your probiotic supplements for a while and you don’t feel they are working as expected, there are a few reasons why this may be the case:

1. Insufficient Prebiotics. No matter how good your probiotics are, if you’re not feeding those good bacteria with enough prebiotics, their ability to help and heal your gut health (and other associated issues) will be reduced.
2. Mixing With Antibiotics. Probiotics should be taken, in general, three hours after antibiotics, otherwise the antibiotics will simply kill off the bacteria in the probiotics.
3. Not Following Dosage Instructions. Shelf-stable products can usually be taken with or without food, but if your probiotics are not shelf-stable, then they should be taken with a little food to minimize the risk of them being completely destroyed by your stomach acids.

   The other aspect of this is to make sure you take them when recommended, and for however many days the instructions tell you. It’s best to take them at the same time each day (i.e. as per the dosage information), and make it a habit. Even set an alarm on your phone, if necessary.

4. Quality. The product is not high enough quality (see the section above for what you should be looking for). For example, it doesn’t matter how high the CFU count is if the bacteria are all dead before you even open the bottle.
5. Storage. Shelf-stable products (as recommended above) shouldn’t cause problems, but if the product requires refrigeration, then make sure you do so, otherwise the potency will be diminished.
6. Wrong Strains. It’s possible that the strain(s) of bacteria contained in your product are not the right ones for the condition you’re trying to treat. Again, this is why it’s important to consult a trained professional who can advise you on what is most appropriate for you.

Conclusion

Probiotics (and prebiotics) should ideally be part of your diet, but some of those fermented foods are definitely an acquired taste. (I struggle with most of those, for taste and/or texture reasons.)

Finding a high-quality supplement that meets all your needs can be difficult too, and the better ones are often not cheap – not that price is always a good indicator of quality, of course – but the benefits can easily be worth it.

And lastly, don’t forget to check out the 25 Prebiotic / Probiotic Recipes I’ve collated for you!

Additional Resources

These are suggestions for those who wish to delve deeper into any of the above:

1. Fermented Foods Book