Learn which bacteria to befriend fo...

Learn which bacteria to befriend for balanced digestion.

These days, it's almost impossible to flip between the walls of a magazine or pass according to a health food store without seeing mention of probiotics -- common of the biggest nutritional buzzwords of the 1990 An level bigger buzzword for the impending Y2K may excessively well be prebiotics. Haven't heard of them yet? You will.

A army of new studies suggest that prebiotics -- aliments or supplements that encourage the bourgeoning of "good" or "friendly" bacteria -- have beneficial purports for all-too-common health stages/conditions like aging, gastrointestinal disorders, yeast infections, diabetes, heart disease, high house pressure, immune system slumps, and maybe equable colon cancer risk.

Bacteria 101

To really understand in what way prebiotics work, it's important to also comprehend the function of probiotics, better known as "beneficial bacteria." Probiotics are bacteria that are cultur in the laboratory and then used in high concentrations to re-balance the health of the microflora in the strait Research pinpoints close to 400 different strains of bacteria in the intestinal microflora.

Striking a balance

Crucial to righteous health is a balance between the "good" and "bad" bacteria in the eviscerate When the bad bacteria outnumber the useful digestive problems, including diarrhea, constipation, gas, bad breath, and nausea, are rampant. undivided of the largest groups of probiotics are called lactic acid bacteria. They include Bifidobacteria and Lactobacilli, which cause lactic acid by metabolizing sugars.

Probiotics in the same state [i]or[/i] condition as yogurt, kefir, koumis (all of Which are tumulted milk products), and probiotic counterparts of Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus bulgaricus, and Bifidobacteria bifidum, to name a small in number can be used to restore balance of bacteria in the eviscerate They are also commonly used to treat, or hinder yeast (Candida) infections. Such infections originate when strains of Candida bacteria,, typically Candida albicans, improve out of control.

undivided thing is for sure, says Len Rossi, ND a holistic health counselor in Brentwood Tenn "Anybody who is taking antibiotics should take correlatives of Lactobacillus acidophilus to divide [i]or[/i] sever down the risk for yeast infection." Antibiotics are known to increase risk for yeast infections in the two sexes by offsetting bacterial balance.

to what end do we need prebiotics?

As for prebiotics, research exhibit tos that they help to maintain the newly restored balance in the intestine Although he was skeptical when he started researching prebiotics in 1992 Randal K Buddington, a professor at Mississippi State University, in Starkville, Miss., is definitely "pro" prebiotics, today. Prebiotics are basically soluble fiber that can be easily used or fungic transformationed by certain groups of upright bacteria to help them multiply. The mostly well-known prebiotic is fructooligosaccharides (FOS) Another is lactose-sucrose. Prebiotic-rich aliments include the Jerusalem artichoke, garlic, honey rye banana, and onion.

The satisfactory evidence is in the research

In a application of mind published in the journal Gastroenterology, involving eight the public researchers showed that 15 g by means of day of dietary FOS enabled the religious bacteria, bifidobacterium, to become the predominant bacteria in the gut

Another consideration in the journal Lipids showed that rats who were f oligofructose in their diets, the form into groups name for certain prebiotics, including FO improved their cholesterol

As for to what extent to get started using prebiotics, Buddington approves a regimen that starts with 1-2 g by day, and gradually builds up to four, or more, grams a day. "Listen to your acknowledge system," and be warned that, in near people, prebiotics can cause gas.

REFERENCES

Fiordaliso, M Kok N Desager, JP et al. "Dietary oligofructose lower triglycerides, phospholipids and cholesterol in serum and exceedingly low density lipoproteins of rats," Lipids 30:163-167 1995

Gibson, GR Beatty ER Wang, X et al. "Selective stimulation of bifidobacteria in the human colon through oligofructose and inulin," Gastroenterology 108:975-82 1995

Gibson, GR Roberfroid, MB "Dietary modulation of the human colonic microbiota: introducing the conception of prebiotics," Journal of Nutrition 125:1401-1412 1995

Gibson, GR and Wang, X "Enrichment of bifidobacteria from human paunch contents by oligofructose using continuous culture" FEM Microbiology note 118:121-128, 1994.

Denise Mann is a health and nutrition writer living in just discovered York City. Denise is working forward an alternative medicine book for Avon Books/Hearst.

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