What are probiotics and prebiotics? What are some prebiotic foods? List of efficacy and effects
What are probiotics and prebiotics? What are some prebiotic foods? List of efficacy and effects
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What are probiotics and prebiotics? What are some prebiotic foods? List of efficacy and effects
The human digestive tract is home to trillions of microorganisms, including bad bacteria that are harmful to health, as well as good bacteria that are beneficial to the digestive system. These good bacteria are called "probiotics."
Probiotics not only participate in the process of breaking down food, but also help the body produce essential vitamins. If you want to increase the number of probiotics, you need to take prebiotics (also known as probiotics, prebiotics), which are the "food" of probiotics and can promote the growth of probiotics.
What are probiotics and prebiotics? <a href=https://lifenutrients.tw/probiotics>Probiotics Recommendations</a> What are the benefits of taking probiotics? Which foods are rich in probiotics? Let’s take a deeper look together.
What are probiotics?
Probiotics refer to various microorganisms that are beneficial to the human body after consumption. The most common probiotics include Lactobacillus acidophilus (A bacteria) and Lactobacillus casei (C bacteria); Bifidobacterium bifidum (B bacteria). Among them, Lactobacillus has the most diverse probiotic effects.
What are prebiotics?
In addition to nutrients that can be digested by the human body, natural foods also contain some ingredients that cannot be digested, such as water-soluble dietary fiber, which is the main source of prebiotics. Simply put, prebiotics can be regarded as nutrients for probiotics, and probiotics will decompose prebiotics and then reproduce. Common prebiotics include fructooligosaccharides, inulin, galacto-oligosaccharides, etc.
The role and efficacy of probiotics
The main benefit of taking probiotics is improving gastrointestinal function. Since the intestines are the largest microbial habitat in the human body, when the number of probiotics in the intestine increases, the growth of bad bacteria will be inhibited and the flora ecology will change, thereby promoting digestive function, making bowel movements smoother, and reducing uncomfortable symptoms such as constipation, diarrhea, and flatulence. In addition, studies have shown that increasing beneficial intestinal bacteria can help enhance immunity, prevent or improve vaginal and urinary tract infections and infectious gastroenteritis, and relieve diarrhea caused by long-term use of antibiotics.
In addition, according to literature from the Taiwan Neonatology Society, some probiotics may help reduce the crying of infants with colic, so parents can choose formula milk containing probiotics for their babies to try after consulting a doctor. However, the Ministry of Health and Welfare also reminds that although long-term supplementation of probiotics is harmless, infants under six months old should consider supplementation after evaluation by a doctor because their gastrointestinal development is not yet mature.
<a href=https://healthynature.tw/%E7%9B%8A%E7%94%9F%E8%8F%8C%E7%9A%84%E5%85%A8%E6%96%B9%E4%BD%8D%E7%9B%8A%E8%99%95>Probiotics</a> Foods that contain probiotics include fermented foods such as kimchi.
What are the benefits of prebiotics and probiotic foods? How to eat?
Because probiotics and prebiotics complement each other, only by taking both at the same time can the health benefits be maximized. There are two ways to supplement probiotics and prebiotics:
1. Intake from natural foods: As mentioned earlier, prebiotics mainly come from dietary fiber. Many natural ingredients are rich in prebiotics, such as asparagus, celery, bananas, berries, onions, garlic and other fruits and vegetables and whole wheat products; probiotics are more abundant in fermented foods, such as kimchi, miso, natto, soy milk and yogurt.
2. Supplement nutritional health foods: There are many kinds of probiotic products on the market. In addition to different probiotic strains, prebiotics are usually added to enhance the effect. If your daily diet is not balanced, you can consider purchasing probiotic health foods to make up for the shortfall.
How to choose probiotics<a href=https://healthport.tw>recommended probiotics</a>? Tablets or powder?
There are many types of probiotics, which often confuses people when buying <a href=https://healthport.tw>probiotic recommendations</a>. In fact, as long as you pay attention to the following points, it is not difficult to choose the right probiotics that meet your needs:
1. Choose products with strain numbers: Even the same bacteria can be subdivided into different strains. For example, the well-known LP33 is a strain of Lactobacillus paracasei (L. paracasei). The strain number means that the strain has been extensively studied and patented, and is therefore safer.
2. Avoid taking extra sugar: Some probiotics may add sucrose or sugar substitutes to improve the taste, but this is not good for intestinal health.
3. Pay attention to the bacterial content: According to the regulations of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, probiotics currently on the market must not contain Enterococcus faecalis and Enterococcus faecium.
Probiotic products come in different forms such as capsules, tablets, and powders. In terms of absorption rate, powder is more effective but tends to adhere to the mouth or esophagus. Capsules and tablets are more resistant to stomach acid and increase the survival rate of probiotics, so they are mostly used for acid-intolerant strains. However, the tablets require high temperatures during the production process and excipients are added, which causes a higher number of probiotics to die and ingest more additives.
Overall, it is recommended to give priority to capsule-shaped probiotics, which is not only convenient, but also reduces the ineffectiveness of probiotics before they take effect.