Probiotics: Bacteria In Your Food

Eating, drinking, and snacking these are very much our daily eating routine. What would your reaction be if I tell you to drink, and snack on microorganisms?

You’d be rightfully surprised, I’d imagine.

Bacteria in your food? We’ve trained to be as hygienic as possible in selecting goods at the local farmer’s market to the preparations of the foods we eat…and now, there’s this new trend of actually consuming foods which have bacteria in them?

Relax. You’re not going to munch on Salmonella or drink up E. coli. The microorganisms we’re talking about here are probiotics or the good bacteria.

What are probiotics?

As I said before, they are the good guys. Wikipedia defines probiotics as dietary supplements and live microorganisms containing potentially beneficial bacteria or yeasts”.

The digestive tract has 400 species of naturally occurring bacteria. These microorganisms occur in symbiosis with your body. They carry out important processes in the digestive tract therefore it is important that a healthy balance between the good and bad bacteria is maintained.

Why are probiotics good for you?

There are now numerous studies which support the supplementation of probiotics.

One study on day care-aged children showed that consumption of probiotics-fortified lowered the rate of infections of the upper respiratory tract such as colds. There are also studies with children on antibiotics and are also taking probiotics at the same time; there was a reduction in the reports of diarrhea.

One study in adult has revealed that workers who took probiotics had less time off from work than those who didn’t.

Maintaining the Balance

Diarrhea, irritable bowel syndrome, and inflammatory bowel disease are the results of the imbalance between the good and bad bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract. Good bacteria keep the pathogenic, disease-causing microorganisms from proliferating in the digestive track and once this delicate equilibrium is disrupted, common digestive problems occur.

Taking antibiotics which can kill good bacteria is one of the most common causes of problems of the digestive tract arise. Bad bacteria will begin to take over the normal microbiotic flora of the gastrointestinal system.

Benefits of Probiotics

A gastrointestinal specialist from Chicago’s Rush University, Dr. Sri Komanduri, recommends taking 450 billion live lactic acid bacteria (LAB) medical-strength probiotics supplements to keep the microbiotic balance stable. Here is a short list of the benefits you will obtain from consuming adequate probiotics. These will likely increase as more and more research are underway in this field of nutrition and medicine.

1. Reduced Cholesterol Levels Laboratory studies on animals have demonstrated that a certain range of lactic acid bacteria are effective in lowering cholesterol levels in the blood.
2. Reduced Inflammation Clinical studies have shown that lactic acid bacteria prevent recurrences of inflammatory bowel disease in adults to some degree.
3. Improved Immune Function There has been evidence that probiotics may improve immune function by boosting the production of lymphocytes and phagocytes which are the front liners against infections. Probiotics, specifically lactic acid bacteria, are suggested to be effective in the treatment and prevention of acute diarrhea, and in decreasing the severity and duration of rotavirus infections in children and travelers' diarrhea in adults.”
4. Improved Mineral Absorption Probiotics produce lactoferrin, a protein by-product of their metabolism, which in turn recover iron from the foods we eat. It is also suggested that certain strains of lactobacilli which can remedy various nutrient/mineral malabsorption problems.
5. Lactose Intolerance Certain strains of lactic acid bacteria are added to certain foods to lessen the effects of lactose intolerance. Ingestion of LAB allows lactose intolerant individuals to accept more lactose in their system than they normally can.

However, be sure to check with your doctor if you are going to take probiotics supplements. There are also studies which suggest than intake of probiotics can have undesirable effects on your body, especially with critically ill patients. Throw caution to the winds and research the internet, ask around, and consult your doctor.