When talking about health supplements you often hear about creatine, whey protein, and fish oil just to name a few. But what about probiotics? You may have heard about them on the Activia commercials but are unsure about what they actually do. Probiotics are live bacteria that can be taken to help restore the balance between good bacteria and bad bacteria in your gut. Antibiotics, preservatives in food, and artificial sweeteners can reduce the number of good bacteria. When the number of bad bacteria outweighs the number of good bacteria in your gut, you may experience a range of digestive disorders. These can include bloating, indigestion, and/or gas. While doctors may recommend taking probiotics when experiencing gastrointestinal conditions with antibiotic use, it could be beneficial for taking daily as well. One can navigate here to get proper help getting their immunity stronger.
Better Digestion
Probiotics may aid in digestive disorders such as diarrhea, irritable bowel syndrome, and inflammatory bowel disorder. But even if you don’t have any of these disorders, probiotics may assist in digestion, nutrient absorption, and immune function. For someone with a health and fitness goal, such as weight loss, these elements can be crucial. You could be following a fantastic nutrition plan, but not reap any of the benefits. Your body must be functioning properly to ensure you are absorbing all the vitamins and minerals you are taking in.
Quality Matters
As more and more pharmaceutical companies jump into this supplement niche, it becomes ever more important to ensure that the products are researched. Not all probiotic supplements are created equal. Depending on the brand, it may only contain one strain of beneficial bacteria. Now that may be the strain your body needs, however, you may not see any changes when taking the supplement. When choosing a supplement I would advise picking one with multiple strains of bacteria. Make sure to consult a doctor on which brands actually contain live bacteria and be sure to read the storage instructions. Some brands may require refrigeration to keep the bacteria alive.
An Experiment of One
So what the verdict? Beneficial or Fad? Well, it all depends on the brand. Probiotics indeed can be very beneficial, but it must come from a good quality source. When trying to pick a brand make sure you do your research. Some of the over the counter probiotics may just be a waste of your time and money.
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