How Probiotics Can Make Your Digestive System "Happy" Again
- From: rpautrey2 <rpautrey2@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 5 Mar 2008 15:56:22 -0800 (PST)
Excerpts From:
http://products.mercola.com/probiotics/special/
How Probiotics Can Make Your Digestive
System "Happy" Again
First of all, many of you may not know much about probiotics. I
understand this fully, as confusion still remains on the topic.
The term probiotics comes from the Greek word "for life." (So now you
probably understand what the word "antibiotics" really means.)
When ingested, these living microorganisms replenish the microflora in
your intestinal tract.* This replenishment results in the promotion of
a number of health-enhancing functions, including enhanced digestive
support.*
One question I frequently get in my clinic involves how people solved
their digestive issues in times long past. Did they simply live with
their digestive challenges -- or perhaps these types of issues did not
even exist?
The answer probably involves a little of both. But history does show
us how different cultures have best promoted their intestinal health
over time.
Historically, people used fermented foods like yogurt and sauerkraut
both as food preservatives to limit spoilage, and to support their
intestinal and overall health.
80% of your immune system is located in your digestive system
As far back as Roman times, people consumed sauerkraut as a delicious
food, and for health-related issues.
In ancient Indian society, it became commonplace (and still does) to
consume a before-dinner yogurt drink called a lassi. At the end of the
meal, the people of India consumed a small serving of curd.
These Indian traditions were based on the principle of using sour milk
as a probiotic delivery system to your body.
The Bulgarians are noted both for their longevity and their high
consumption of fermented milk and kefir. In Asian cultures, pickled
fermentations of cabbage, turnips, eggplant, cucumbers, onions,
squash, and carrots still exist today.
So it seems that many cultures used different techniques to support
their intestinal health. Why can't we simply practice these methods
today?
As you may have noticed, many cultures are still trying to follow
traditional dietary practices today. However, challenges arise from
poor dietary habits and the environment.
The processed foods so inherent in most diets can upset the balance of
bacteria needed for the support of your intestinal health. Plus, many
food products get pasteurized or sterilized in the production process,
destroying helpful bacteria you need for promoting your intestinal
health.
One of the top issues I've been faced with in my clinic involves
patients looking for better ways to support their overall digestion.
Taking a good probiotic and following sound dietary principles provide
the best ways I've found to promote your digestive health.*
Good Intestinal Health Becomes Crucial in Promoting
Your Overall Health*
Increased understanding of bacterial effects on the gastro-intestinal
(GI) and immune systems has led to increased credibility in the use of
probiotics over the past thirty years.
Ongoing research confirms health-supporting benefits of probiotics.*
Today the science of probiotics has evolved into a rapidly growing
field, generating a great deal of interest both from physicians and
consumers.
I've heard it said that "death begins in the colon." On the contrary,
I'd rather say "life is promoted and enhanced in the colon -- if you
know what you are doing."
Maintaining great intestinal health is akin to maintaining great
overall health.*
And when you're in good shape with your overall health, you'll
naturally feel better -- and be able to do more of the pleasurable
things in life.
Some of the statistics about your intestine read like a "Ripley's
Believe It or Not". Did you know that?
About 80% of your immune system resides in your gastrointestinal
tract.
500 species of bacteria live inside you.
About one hundred trillion bacteria live inside you -- more than TEN
TIMES the number of cells you have in your entire body.
The weight of these bacteria constitutes about two to three pounds.
Some of these bacteria are referred to as "good" and some as "bad".
The ideal balance between them is 85% good and 15% bad.
This ratio between the "good" bacteria and the "bad" bacteria becomes
one of the critical factors determining your optimal health.*
What sorts of things influence the ratio between good and bad
bacteria? Diet, geographic location, age, stress, and health issues
are some of the key factors.
When you take your best step forward in improving your intestinal
health, your overall health improvement naturally follows.
For example, if you've been frustrated by occasional irregularity,
taking probiotics could not only help your problem, but could lead you
to feeling better while supporting your overall health as well. *
Your Immune System is Depending on You
Before your birth, your GI tract was sterile. The moment after your
birth, colonization of bacteria began in your gut.
The first bacteria to settle in were the immune-building ones from
breast milk, increasing your level of health and favoring your
survival.
In a sense, we spend the rest of our lives "trashing" it with bad
stuff - like poor dietary choices and other lifestyle choices that
cause the wrong bacteria to flourish in your intestine.
Or sometimes our environment plays a major part as well.
Yet gut flora, the microorganisms living in your gut, continually and
dynamically affect your immune system.
Helpful bacteria prevent the growth of undesirable ones by competing
for both nutrition and attachment sites in the tissues of the colon.
Therefore, keeping the right balance of bacteria becomes critical in
support of your immune system.* That's where Complete Probiotics comes
in... to support you in doing just that.*
Where Have All the Bacteria Gone?
It seems that in our collective zeal to rid ourselves of disease (and
every trace of bacteria in our food supply and everywhere else), we
may have outdone ourselves.
Energy and passion to go! Smart health with probiotics.
As a whole, we're less exposed to bacteria now than in the past - both
"bad" and "good" bacteria.
Foods presently labeled as 'health-promoting' contain good bacteria.
Think cultured foods like yogurt, some cheeses, and sauerkraut.
But due to strict food safety regulations, less bacteria (bad or good)
survive the manufacturing process.
At the end of the production process, many products get pasteurized or
sterilized, destroying bacteria.
While this may be helpful in disease prevention, it also means we get
less health-enhancing bacteria.
Since helpful bacteria are increasingly absent in our food, it becomes
even more important to include supplementation with probiotics.
This gives your GI tract and entire immune system an extra "edge" - to
maximize the benefits of a healthy diet.*
With all the multiple varieties of both good and bad bacteria, when it
comes down to the top health-promoting bacteria...
The Probiotics "Medal of Honor" Goes to... L. Sporogenes
Recently, Lactobacillus sporogenes was found to produce the beneficial
lactic acid that improves probiotic shelf life and survival issues in
your stomach.*
Unlike other lactobacilli, L. sporogenes exists as a spore, wrapped in
a protective coat. Spores exist like plant seeds - they can stay alive
for years. And when conditions exist for optimal growth, they open up
and become a new plant.
Taken orally, the spores' protective coat helps them survive the
rigors of stomach acid.* The spores get activated due to the low pH,
mechanical churning of the stomach, and water in the gastric
environment.
As the spores absorb water, they swell and move faster, propelling
them into the small intestine.
Once in the small intestine, they germinate, proliferate and multiply
rapidly into viable bacilli to persist in their beneficial life
activities.
In the intestinal tract, they continue their metabolic activities,
producing lactic acid to assist in digestion and absorption of
vitamins and minerals.*
In turn, the lactic acid levels on the inner surface of the intestinal
tract maintain a micro-ecological balance in the GI tract.*
(c)2007 Mercola.com
Disclaimer: The entire contents of this website are based upon the
opinions of Dr. Mercola, unless otherwise noted. Individual articles
are based upon the opinions of the respective author, who retains
copyright as marked. The information on this website is not intended
to replace a one-on-one relationship with a qualified health care
professional and is not intended as medical advice. It is intended as
a sharing of knowledge and information from the research and
experience of Dr. Mercola and his community. Dr. Mercola encourages
you to make your own health care decisions based upon your research
and in partnership with a qualified health care professional.
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