A probiotic can be one of the most important things you add to your daily routine for overall health and wellness. Whether you struggle with constipation or IBS, you don’t feel like you digest your food well, or you’d like to repair your gut, a probiotic can help.

We’re even discovering the important role probiotics can play in our mental health because the gut and brain are deeply connected to one another.

With that in mind, choosing a probiotic can be somewhat overwhelming, and the following are things to know.

The Basics of a Probiotic

Before you decide on a specific probiotic, it’s good to have a little background. Probiotics help populate your gut with good bacteria that keep your GI system in proper working order and well-balanced. You want to have more good bacteria than bad bacteria. Probiotics can also keep pathogens, yeast, and parasites at bay.

Probiotics will compete against the bad flora on the lining of your intestines, providing you pathogen protection.

Specifically, the benefits of a probiotic can include:

• Probiotics restore your gut’s natural balance. When there’s an imbalance, there’s too much bad bacteria and not enough good. This can happen because of diet, medication or illness. When you have an imbalance in gut bacteria, it can contribute not only to digestive problems but also to allergies, obesity, and mental health problems.
• Probiotics can improve your heart health because they can help lower blood pressure and bad cholesterol.
• There was a study of pregnant women who took probiotics during that time. Their children had an 83% lower risk of eczema in the first two years of their lives.
• Probiotics may help with symptoms of specific digestive disorders such as Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.
• Probiotics help promote the production of your body’s natural antibodies, including natural killer cells, which strengthen your immune system.
• There are different ways that a probiotic may help you lose belly fat. For example, they might reduce fat absorption in the intestine. Probiotics are also thought to increase hormones that help you feel fuller for longer and store less fat.

Some of the signs you could benefit from taking a probiotic include:

• Your digestive function is irregular.
• You have sugar cravings on a frequent basis.
• You took an antibiotic.
• You have skin issues like eczema, rashes, or psoriasis.

Colony Forming Units

One of the most important considerations when you choose a probiotic is how many colony-forming units or CFUs it has. You should look for probiotics with at least one billion CFUs.

A good all-around probiotic will usually have lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium, or saccharomyces.

These are the three strains of bacteria that are mainly found in probiotics, and then there are individual species that fall into those strains.

Lactobacillus

Lactobacillus bacteria primarily live in your small bowel. Your small bowel is the part of your gut following your stomach.

When you take a probiotic with lactobacillus, it repopulates your small intestine with beneficial species like L. acidophilus and L. Plantarum. This helps with digestion and also helps boost your immune system.

Some species of Lactobacillus can help reduce gut inflammation and may improve GABA levels, which can aid with stress relief and anxiety.

Bifidobacteria

Bifidobacteria are mostly found in the colon, also known as the large intestine. Bifidobacteria produce something called butyrate. Butyrate is a fatty acid that gives energy to the colon cells so they can function optimally.

Butyrate can also help regulate your blood sugar, and it even plays a role in memory.

Some evidence has found that particular species of Bifidobacteria can help reduce appetite and manage weight.

Saccharomyces

Saccharomyces is a yeast that helps promote a healthy gut lining. It can also protect you from the negative effects of taking antibiotics, such as leaky gut.

Other Factors To Consider

Along with thinking about the types of bacteria that are in a probiotic and what your health needs or goals are, other factors to think about when choosing a product include:

• Again, the higher the CFUs, typically the better a probiotic is. You’ll find that a dose of probiotic will go up to 100 CFUs. You might want to start on the lower end of that, though, and see how your body tolerates it, and then you can always go up.
• The more diverse the strains of bacteria in a probiotic, the better. You want a diverse gut.
• Try to find a dairy-free probiotic if you can.
• Be careful about additional ingredients such as fillers or binders. Carefully read the label.
• Check how a probiotic has to be stored. Some have to be refrigerated, and you shouldn’t take a probiotic after its expiration date because there are living organisms in it.
• Try to buy from reputable companies. The bigger the company and the more mainstream their reputation, the better.

Probiotics for Specific Health Concerns

If your biggest goal is to alleviate constipation, then you might want a strain like B. lactis, B longum, or S. cerevisiae.

On the other end of the spectrum, if you frequently deal with diarrhea, you might want a probiotic with strains like Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG or Lactobacillus acidophilus.

For brain health, consider a probiotic with Bifidobacterium longum, Bifidobacterium breve or Bifidobacterium infantis. These are some strains that have been studied and found to help improve symptoms of a variety of mental health disorders like depression and anxiety.

For an immune boost, look at strains including Lactobacillus GG, Lactobacillus crispatus, or Lactobacillus gasseri. These types of probiotics have been found to help reduce the likelihood of getting a respiratory illness, urinary tract infections, and even eczema. They might also help reduce inflammation.

For general health, a Bifidobacterium bifidum strain is helpful.

While probiotics are considered safe for most people, if you are very sick or have a weak or compromised immune system, you might not be able to take probiotics. Speak to your doctor if you’re not sure whether or not a probiotic is right for you.

Image by Alicia Harper from Pixabay 

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