Many people ask me if they still need to take Probiotics when they are eating yogurt on a daily basis

Old-fashioned, raw and unpasteurized yogurt was a wonderful source of good bacteria, but unfortunately today it’s very difficult to find yogurt in this form.

Pasteurization kills off or sterilizes much of the good bacteria that gives yogurt it’s good reputation.

WHY DO WE NEED GOOD BACTERIA?

Cultured and fermented foods, such as yogurt, have been consumed by many cultures for years as a source of bacteria, which act as a support to their digestive health and immune function. Today, however, for many it is more practical to take a good quality probiotic supplement, in order to populate the digestive system with good bacteria.

Probiotics, also known as gut flora or healthy bacteria, is a variety of friendly bacteria that benefits the digestive system. The benefits range from helping to normalize digestive function to assisting the immune system, allergies and skin problems.

Probiotics are used to Help Treat & Prevent a Range of Health Conditions:

Probiotics are regularly used by Naturopaths to help treat and prevent the following health problems:

  • Thrush and candida
  • Leaky gut (and associated conditions, eg migraines, acne, lymphatic congestion, and more)
  • Eczema and acne
  • Colic and acid reflux
  • Fatigue
  • Autism
  • ADHD
  • Food allergies, such as dairy and gluten
  • Post-antibiotic diarrhea
  • Hay fever
  • Sinusitis
  • Weight loss
  • Vaginal infections
  • Diarrhea, constipation and irregular bowel motions
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Irritable bowel syndrome and malabsorption
  • Ulcerative colitis

Choosing the Right Probiotics for the Right Condition

The quality and potency of probiotics available in healthfood stores and our food varies enormously.  For example, some of my clients ask if the probiotics in supermarket yogurt is sufficient, but you would probably need a bucket of the yogurt to equal half a teaspoon of a good quality probiotic supplement. Likewise, products on the shelves of healthfood stores also have widely ranging potencies.

In a healthy bowel there can be 3-4 pounds of healthy bacteria, so to make an impact, you need a high potency product, which I usually recommend is taken at the highest dosage on the bottle for adults.

When looking for a supplement, I recommend you look out for supplements that list specific strands of bacteria on their label. I recommend a product with a variety of different probiotics. Also, the list below gives more detailed information about the health benefits of particular types.

  • Lactobacillus Acidophilus DDS1
    Helps with immune support and digestive function, as well as to assist with lactose intolerance
  • Bifidis Regularis
    Gut health and digestion
  • Bifidobacterium Infantis 35624
    IBS
  • Bifidobacterium lactis Bb12
    Immune system support and gut health
  • Lactobacillus Casei Shirota
    Immune system support and gut health
  • Lactobacillus Immunitas
    Immune system support, duration of colds and flu in older people
  • Lactobacillus Rhamnosus GR11
    Helps vaginal infections
  • Lactobacillus Reuteri 55730
    Helps with diarrhea associated by antibiotic usage
  • Saccharomyces Boulardii Yeast
    Helps with diarrhea associated by antibiotic usage

What Puts Healthy Bacteria in the Gut at Threat?

There are several key things which kill and undermine healthy bacteria in the gut, as well as things which fuel bad bacteria. The main things to be aware of are:

  • Antibiotics
  • Drugs
  • Some pharmaceutical medicines
  • Alcohol
  • Sugar
  • Stress

For more information about how to correct and rebalance your gut flora please contact me.