There has been a lot of talk recently about the digestive benefits of probiotics. These are living microorganisms which offer a health benefit to their host, including lowering of cholesterol and blood pressure, reducing inflammation, managing lactose intolerance, and boosting immunity. Certain fermented foods – like pickles, miso soup, yogurt, soy sauce, or sauerkraut – contain types of bacteria that aid in healthy digestion. These beneficial bacterial strains include bifidobacterium and lactobacillis, two of the most common probiotics. The way they work is by adding “good” bacteria to your intestinal tract and overcoming the bacterial imbalance called dysbiosis, in which factors such as stress or poor nutrition can result in an overabundance of “bad” bacteria. These bad bacteria have been associated with such illnesses as rheumatoid arthritis and irritable bowel syndrome. Probiotics replace missing good bacteria in your system, leading to better digestion and overall health. Other (as yet unsubstantiated) claims made as to the benefits of consuming probiotics include promoting healthy skin, reducing severity of asthma and allergies, and reduction of mental illness.
What we don’t hear about so often is the need to consume prebiotics in conjunction with probiotics. Probiotics alone can not offer optimal benefit because they can pass through the digestive tract quickly if they don’t have prebiotics to latch onto there. It is the job of prebiotics to keep the good bacteria healthy. Prebiotics are not digested, so they serve as food to the probiotic bacteria, helping them to grow and thrive in your system. The primary source of prebiotics is oligosaccharides, which are nondigestible carbohydrate fibers that stay in your system and stimulate growth of the good bacteria. Natural oligosaccharides come from foods like honey, garlic, asparagus, wheat bran, chicory root, and soy beans, or they can be consumed as a vitamin-like supplement.
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