Think of bacteria and what comes to your mind? DISEASE and INFECTION! But we need to understand that there is good and bad bacteria and the good one’s crucial for our body.
Probiotics are good bacteria in your body that help maintain essential balances in the body, fight off bad bacteria and keep you healthy.
Probiotics maintain a healthy bacterial balance in your gut which leads to myriads of health benefits. Probiotics are found in fermented foods but one can supplement with artificial probiotics too. They are easy to consume, safe to use and offer all the goodness of probiotics.
Probiotics are essential for the human body and the article seeks to guide the reader thoroughly. Read till the end to know probiotics in detail.
What are Probiotics?
Probiotics are live, beneficial bacteria and/or yeasts that exist naturally in your body. Bacteria are generally considered to be disease-causing organisms. However, you have two types of bacteria living on and within your body: good and bad bacteria.
Probiotics are a type of beneficial microorganisms that help your body function properly. These good bacteria aid in various ways, including combating harmful germs and aiding in the healing process.
Probiotics are only one component in the bigger picture of bacteria and your body — your microbiome. Consider a microbiome to be like a forest with many different species that work together to keep you healthy. This community is made up of organisms called microbes. You have trillions of microbes on and in your body. These microbes are composed of:
- Bacteria.
- Viruses.
- Protozoa
- Fungi (including yeasts).
To be called a probiotic, a microbe must fulfill the following conditions:
- Survive in your intestine after ingestion (being eaten).
- Beneficial for you.
- Be safely consumed.
How Do Probiotics Help?
The human body is home to trillions of microbes, including bacteria, fungi, and viruses. These microbes play an important role in our overall health. They help break down food, produce vitamins, and protect us from harmful bacteria. Probiotics are live microorganisms that can offer some of these same benefits.
When we take probiotics, they travel through the stomach and intestine, where they can begin to colonize. There are many different ways probiotics can work within the human body. Some of the most well-known ways include supporting digestive health, boosting the immune system, and helping to maintain a healthy weight.
Maintain Balance of Good and Bad Bacteria
Probiotics maintain a balance of good and bad bacteria in the gut. This is a crucial function as an imbalance of gut bacteria has been linked with a variety of health problems, including digestive issues, skin conditions and even mental health disorders. Probiotics can help to restore this balance and keep the gut healthy.
Stimulate Immune System
Probiotics stimulate the immune system, helping the body against a range of infections and diseases. Probiotics gear up the immune system by stimulating the production of specific antibodies and white blood cells. These antibodies potentially play a critical role in decreasing the spread of disease-carrying bacteria to the liver and the spleen, which means a better immune system and overall health.
Probiotics Help Reduce Inflammation
Additionally, probiotics can also help reduce inflammation throughout the body, which is thought to be beneficial for various conditions, including joint pain and Crohn’s disease. There is a growing body of evidence linking inflammation to a variety of diseases and conditions, such as heart disease, arthritis, diabetes, and cancer.
Certain probiotic strains can help reduce inflammation in the gut, leading to reduced inflammation throughout the body.
In one study, people with rheumatoid arthritis who took a probiotic supplement for eight weeks had significantly lower levels of inflammatory markers than those who did not take the supplement.
May Assist Weight Loss
Probiotics have a role to play when it comes to weight loss. They work by reducing the amount of fat that is absorbed from food. This could be helpful for those who are trying to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight by controlling their caloric intake.
Reduce the Frequency of Diarrhea
A change in the gut’s bacteria can cause loose stools, one of the most common causes of diarrhea. Antibiotics frequently disturb the gut microbiome’s equilibrium, resulting in antibiotic-associated diarrhea and the loss of beneficial microorganisms.
Probiotics may reduce the risk of antibiotic-associated diarrhea in adults aged 18-64.
Maintain and Improve Gut Integrity
The gut barrier, a thin (but strong) layer of cells known as the gut wall, that protects the digestive system. This wall allows good particles like electrolytes and water to move from the intestine to the circulation while preventing partially digested food or disease-causing components from passing through. Increased intestinal permeability, commonly called “leaky gut syndrome,” occurs when the gut barrier is weakened or inflamed.
This is an ongoing question in the field of food science. More study is needed to discover why this happens. According to studies, genetics, stress, alcohol consumption, and poor nutrition can impact the gut barrier’s integrity. Probiotic pills seemed to help maintain intestinal wall stability in a group of 23 males studied by one research team.
Improve Mood and Reduce Stress
Bacteria in the stomach produce neurotransmitters, which are the body’s messengers. Neurotransmitters aid sleep, mood, and control of your bladder and heart function.
Stress has been shown to upset gut bacteria, which could impact neurotransmitter quantity and function. Probiotic supplements can help restore gut bacteria during stressful times and after they’ve died off. They’ve also been found to improve mood, sleep quality, and cognitive performance.
Why is a Probiotic Supplement Essential?
As explained above, probiotics are live microorganisms found in certain foods, and they offer several benefits to our bodies. For starters, probiotics help support our digestive health by maintaining the balance of good and bad bacteria in our gut.
They also help boost our immune system, which can protect us from illnesses and infections. Additionally, probiotics have been shown to promote better absorption of nutrients from our food and reduce inflammation throughout the body. In other words, probiotics are amazing! So, if you’re looking for a way to improve your overall health, be sure to include probiotic-rich foods in your diet. Your body will thank you!
Probiotics are taken through diet; they are found in fermented foods like yogurt, but what will you do if you aren’t a big yogurt lover? Let bad bacteria ruin your microbiome and develop a disease-welcoming, toxic gut environment? Obviously no!
Summary
Probiotics fight off bad, harmful bacteria in our gut, leading to an extensive list of benefits all over the body. From better mood and sleep to hedging against inflammation and depression, there is nothing probiotics do not help us with. They are naturally found in fermented foods, but you can also find some amazing probiotics supplements to fuel your body with the necessary nutrients.
