Probiotic foods help digestion
What are the benefits of taking probiotics? Bacteria have a reputation for causing disease, so the idea of tossing down a few billion a day for your health might seem literally and figuratively hard to swallow. But a growing body of scientific evidence suggests that you can treat and even prevent some illnesses with foods and supplements containing certain kinds of live bacteria. Northern Europeans consume a lot of these beneficial microorganisms, called probiotics (from pro and biota, meaning for life), because of their tradition of eating foods fermented with bacteria, such as yogurt. Probiotic-laced beverages are also big business in Japan.
Some digestive disease specialists are recommending probiotic supplements for disorders that frustrate conventional medicine, such as irritable bowel syndrome. Since the mid-1990s, clinical studies suggest that probiotic therapy can help treat several gastrointestinal ills, delay the development of allergies in children, and treat and prevent vaginal and urinary infections in women.
Self-dosing with bacteria isnt as outlandish as it might seem. An estimated 100 trillion microorganisms representing more than 500 different species inhabit every normal, healthy bowel. These microorganisms (or microflora) generally dont make us sick; most are helpful. Gut-dwelling bacteria keep pathogens (harmful microorganisms) in check, aid digestion and nutrient absorption, and contribute to immune function.
The best case for probiotic therapy has been in the treatment of diarrhea. Controlled trials have shown that Lactobacillus GG can shorten the course of infectious diarrhea in infants and children (but not adults). Although studies are limited and data are inconsistent, two large reviews, taken together, suggest that probiotics reduce antibiotic-associated diarrhea by 60%, when compared with a placebo.
More common than diarrhea is the opposite problem constipation. In a search for studies on the benefits of probiotics in treating constipation, researchers found that probiotics slowed gut transit time by 12.4 hours, increases the number of weekly bowel movements by 1.3, and helped to soften stools, making them easier to pass. But the jury is still out on specific recommendations when it comes to the benefits of probiotics for constipation.
Probiotic therapy may also help people with Crohns disease and irritable bowel syndrome. Clinical trial results are mixed, but several small studies suggest that certain probiotics may help maintain remission of ulcerative colitis and prevent relapse of Crohns disease and the recurrence of pouchitis (a complication of surgery to treat ulcerative colitis). Because these disorders are so frustrating to treat, many people are giving probiotics a try before all the evidence is in for the particular strains theyre using. More research is needed to find out which strains work best for what conditions.
Yogurt is a well-known food source of probiotics, beneficial bacteria that promote health. Certain strains of bacteria in yogurt have -D-galactosidase, which is an enzyme that helps break down lactose in dairy products into the sugars glucose and galactose. A lack of this enzyme causes lactose malabsorption. People who eat fresh yogurt containing live and active cultures digest lactose better than those who eat pasteurized yogurt. Yogurt is also rich in minerals like magnesium, phosphorous, potassium, and calcium, which are important for building and maintaining healthy bones.. The USDA MyPlate recommends that adults consume 3 cups of calcium-rich dairy products, including milk, cheese, and yogurt, per day. What counts as a cup of dairy? One cup of milk or yogurt, 2 ounces of processed cheese, and 1 ounces of natural cheese all count as a cup of dairy. Lactobacillus bulgaricus is a probiotic organism that is often found in yogurt.
Sauerkraut and kimchi are fermented foods that are rich in beneficial probiotics that provide a wide range of health benefits. Sauerkraut is fermented cabbage. If you buy sauerkraut at the store, purchase the unpasteurized variety. Pasteurization destroys beneficial bacteria. Probiotics in kimchi inhibit the growth of H pylori. They may also help prevent cancer, obesity, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), dermatitis, food allergies, and obesity. Probiotics in kimchi produce valuable B vitamins, riboflavin and folic acid. These foods contain vitamins that boost immunity and help ward off infection.Miso is a Japanese fermented soybean paste that is made with other ingredients. It aids digestive function. Miso may be used to make miso soup. A few tablespoons of the paste can be dissolved in hot water to make a probiotic-rich broth. An imbalance of gut flora in the GI tract may contribute to symptoms that occur with conditions like diarrhea, constipation, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), gastroenteritis, and inflammatory bowel disease (ulcerative colitis and Chrohns disease). Probiotics in ferrmented foods like miso may help crowd out pathogenic gut bacteria, boost intestinal immunity, and produce vitamins, proteins, and other nutrients that are beneficial to health.
Probiotics in food are beneficial for health, but only if they are tough enough to withstand stomach acid and the make it all the way to your intestines. The makeup of soft cheeses is ideal for delivering probiotics to the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. The pH of a cheese affects the ability of probiotics to survive and grow in the intestines. For this reason, soft cheese is likely better than yogurt for delivering intact probiotics to the GI tract.
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