Probiotics are good bacteria that promote a healthy balance in your digestive tract.
You have heard of these microorganisms, but have you heard of the benefits of taking them?
What is the purpose of probiotics? Your digestive system needs a healthy balance of good and bad bacteria. There are multiple things that contribute to the disturbance of this balance and allows for overgrowth of the bad bacteria. Probiotics will help prevent the overgrowth of bad bacteria to keep your digestive system and you healthy. This can in turn maintain a healthy balance in your entire body. Your digestive tract is the most important organ that you need to protect. When your digestive tract is mistreated with bad foods, beverages, medications, stress and increased abdominal fat then your overall health will suffer.
Do you suffer from a chronic disease? Many symptoms of inflammation in your body can come from poor gut health. As long as you are feeding your gut poor foods and not protecting it, you will continue to have the many symptoms you are experiencing now; fatigue, moodiness, bloating, headaches, joint pain and muscle aches just to name a few.
More than 400 types of bacteria live in the human digestive system. “Pro”biotic means “good”. So what do they do that makes them so “good”?
- help breakdown sugar
- do not allow “bad” organisms from taking over your digestive system
- produce vitamins and help with their absorption
Who would benefit from taking Probiotics?
- having poor digestive health
- obesity
- weak immune system- approximately 70% of your immunity comes from your GI tract
- chronic constipation
- IBS
- Diabetics
- chronic urinary tract infections
- Decrease effect of lactose intolerance
- chronic allergies
- chronic skin conditions
- depression/anxiety
- cardiovascular disease- can help decrease cholesterol levels
- food allergies
What type of probiotic do you need? There are different kinds out there. These are the most popular ones. You can find these over the counter at your local drug store.
- Saccharomyces boulardi
- Lactobacillus acidophilus
- Lactobacillus bulgaricus
- Streptococcus thermophilus
Besides using a daily probiotic for you gut health, what else can you do to promote a balanced digestive tract?
- Eliminate foods that you know cause you discomfort, allergy or intolerance
- Eat foods that contain healthy bacteria- yogurt
- Increase your water intake
- Decrease stress
- Decrease or eliminate processed foods, sugar and refined carbohydrates
- Do not encourage the use of antibiotics unless absolutely necessary
There are several foods that are natural forms of probiotics.
- apple cider vinegar
- kefir
- kombucha
- leeks
- miso
- raw unpasteurized cheese
- sauerkraut
- sourdough bread
- tempeh
- yogurt with live cultures
- pickled veggies
After reading this, do you plan on taking a daily probiotic? Do you plan on changing your eating habits to help protect your gut health? Please share your thoughts below.
Tina Butt, Health and Wellness Coach and Healthcare Advocate
Qualified Wellness Solutions, LLC
tinaqws@gmail.com
Connect with me on social media or join my email list for regular updates on my business and blog posts!