Flu season is upon us this winter season, so fight back the natural way! Even if you are feeling great, it never hurts to add some Probiotics and Prebiotics to your daily life. Together, this dynamic duo acts as the yin and the yang; keeping your system in balance and gearing your body up to do great things from the inside out.
Prebiotics and Probiotics are work together inside your gut to help you reach harmony in a very attainable way, and in doing so to make sure you feel your best on a daily basis.
What are Probiotics?
Probiotics are living microorganisms inside the digestive tract, which are needed to maintain a healthy gut. Probiotics, or "friendly bacteria," are essential to your body and help fight against the proliferation of the bad bacterias that our bodies are fighting off on a daily basis. Probiotics are extremely important for digestive health and also support the immune system.
What is a Prebiotic?
On the other side, a Prebiotic is a food, typically high-fiber foods like dark leafy greens, that feeds these Probiotics and lay the groundwork for them to thrive. In addition to helping provide fuel for the Probiotics in your body, Prebiotic foods have been shown to help boost the metabolism and help fight certain diseases like Crohn's Disease[1].
Prebiotics are high in fiber that isn’t completely digestible, but these non-living nutrients are great for the bacteria that live in your large intestine, one of the most colonized parts of your digestive system. Once it gets past your intestine, the prebiotic is fermented in the large colon, and that fermentation feeds the “good” bacteria that help your digestive system stay on the front lines of fighting off illness and keeping you strong.
Why do you need Probiotics and Prebiotic?
The probiotic needs the prebiotic in order to thrive and create a balanced flora inside your gut. This symbiotic relationship of the Probiotic and Prebiotic help your body to maintain a good ratio of good and bad bacteria in your body. An overgrowth of "bad" bacteria in your body, sometimes referred to as "Candida" can lead to many health issues, from fungus on your nails to oral thrush.
Allowing the "bad" bacteria to have an overgrowth in the gut can stem from many things. It's best to limit things like alcohol, refined sugars, and antibiotics, as those things help feed the bad bacteria and throw off the ration in your digestive tract.
Health Professionals will often suggest their patients who are taking antibiotics also supplement the loss of both good and bad bacteria by taking extra probiotics. The supplemental probiotics help the stomach and colon repopulate the good bacteria, which antibiotics may have compromised. Finding a product that contains both a probiotic and a prebiotic (like this Probiotic Coffee with Aloe Vera) is a great way to help keep your digestive tract balanced, without lots of extra effort.
Gut health can affect many other things in your body that you may not think of, like your skin, your immune health, your nail health, and more!
Sources:
[1] https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/consumer-health/expert-answers/probiotics/faq-20058065
[2] https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/19-best-prebiotic-foods