Probiotics : Understanding How Good Bacteria Promotes Health and Well Being

A lot of people are still confused on what exactly probiotics does as many know them as supplements recommended by their doctor to take alongside antibiotics. Usually the recommendation to combine thrice-daily antibiotic medications with probiotics, is mainly to combat persistent yeast infection or an upset stomach as a side effect of antibiotic formulations. Probiotics are live microorganisms that deliver good bacteria into human gut environment, primarily to kick out the bad bacteria that’s making the digestive system go haywire.

Probiotics Studies Reveal Other Health Benefits

Studies reveal that probiotics strengthens a person’s immune system by redistributing healthy gut flora across a person’s digestive system. Other revealed benefits of probiotics include their efficacy in minimizing cholesterol, gut inflammation and in promoting weight loss. Gut inflammation can be very harmful if left untreated, as it usually results in chronic health problems, such as autoimmune diseases like lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

As mentioned earlier, scientific findings imply that probiotics might have a significant role in reducing weight. However, it is important to take note that its effects may vary from person to person.

Understanding the Use of Probiotics as Weight Loss Treatment

There are a lot of strains that live under the probiotic umbrella including lactobacillus acidophilus which is considered the most popular variant. More than a thousand types of bacteria are present in a person’s intestines including Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Fusobacteria, Actinobacteria, Verrucomicrobia, Cyanobacteria, Proteobacteria.

Yet researches discovered that individuals dealing with obesity and overweight have different compositions of gut bacteria in their intestines, when compared to those who aren’t overweight. Specifically, people with obesity seems to have more Firmicutes than Bacteroidetes bacteria in their gut environment.

Availability of Probiotics in Popular Foods

One way to naturally incorporate probiotics into your diet is by eating some of the most common foods available in grocery stores:

Fermented Foods

While fermented foods such as kimchi and sauerkraut, are usually eaten as side dishes, they are also the most popular natural sources of good bacteria. Sauerkraut also contains a lot of vitamins B, C, E, and A which are a great additional health benefits.

Cultured Milk Products

Yogurt, cheese and a cultured milk drink called kefir are popular examples of natural prebiotics products.

Miso Soup

A Japanese soup served as a warm appetizer, it’s base is made from fermented soybeans.

Kombucha

Although this fizzy drink is served as a soft drink beverage, Kombucha’s taste is not for everyone, which is why it takes a while before a person acquires a taste for it.

Tempeh

This is an Indonesian ingredient made from fermented soybeans like the Japanese miso. Yet unlike miso, the Indonesian tempeh is deep-fried and used as meat alternative in stir fry dishes.

Example of Probiotic Supplement Taken as Weight Loss Treatment

Probiotics as a weight loss treatment is not a one-medication fits all solution for addressing obesity or excessive weight. Nevertheless, there are probiotics that contain multiple strains designed to deliver not only the known health benefits of good bacteria but also to suppress appetite that helps in promoting weight loss.

Floraspring for one is an FDA-approved probiotic formulation, proven by users as the most effective. It uses a multi-dimensional approach by including five different strains of gut flora, each with a specific function; including that of reducing body fat.