Do you Really need Probiotic Supplements in your Diet?

By Maxine Yottoni

Probiotics are microflora that exist in our digestive tract and help maintain a healthy balance in our digestive system. Our body is home to billions of microorganisms, both harmful and beneficial. The intestinal tract is especially bacteria dense. A healthy digestive tract has an optimum balance between the beneficial and harmful bacteria. Once this balance is upset, the body becomes prone to various digestive disorders such as excessive gas and diarrhea.

Before going ahead with the research on this area, there are a few incorrect conceptions that need to be clarified when it comes to the usage of probiotic supplements. First and foremost, we have to understand that antibiotics are way different from probiotics. They are no way connected to each other. Antibiotics just kill bacteria. They have the tendency to spoil the digestive system since they do not differentiate the good and harmful bacteria within the body. The antibiotics as such have the ability to destabilize the digestion process itself. But consuming probiotics can bring in the balance in the digestive process that has been lost due to the intake of antibiotics with ease.

Candida, a common fungal infection can also be very successfully treated with probiotics. The Candida fungus has a sworn enemy in the form of probiotic bacteria, which if present in healthy numbers in the intestines, can make it impossible for the harmful fungus to establish a stronghold in the intestinal tract, thus preventing the advent of this infection. Probiotics have also been found to be extremely good at curing yeast infections and conditions such as athlete's foot and thrush.

Miso and yoghurt are 2 food items that has probiotics in them. The only disadvantage with taking probiotics from food is the fact that we cannot measure the amount or the number of strains of bacteria that is present in such items. This would not help us in understanding the bodys requirement for probiotics in detail.

The strenuous lifestyle and the hectic schedule that we are currently into is pressurizing and has all chances of spoiling the bacterial balance in our guts. The recent inclination towards taking fast food and the popularity that the junk food has gained in the recent past can speak volumes of the imbalance that can occur in the digestive track of humans in the long run. The inability of antibiotics to distinguish between the beneficial and the deleterious bacteria adds fuel to this fire. Even worse is if you are habituated to drugs like steroids and birth control tablets. They affect the gut flora adversely. If you are addicted to drinking coffee or other carbonated beverages often, it is for sure that there would be an imbalance in your gut flora. Too much of strain, water that has chlorine added to it, unnatural coloring, addition of preservative chemicals are some factors that can wipe out the friendly bacteria and can induce the imbalance in human beings.

With as this said, it is very clear that the gut flora needs to be taken care. The imbalance in the digestive track needs to be attended to. The best solution to this problem would be to start taking a probiotic supplement right away on a regular basis. But before deciding on the supplement, make sure that it has multiple variants of bacteria in it and that they are live and active. Opt for the supplement that has a higher bacterial density and the one that is made of only natural sources. Talk to your doctor and make a proper decision regarding the probiotic supplement that you can start right away! - 17273

About the Author:

I am confident I have found the Probiotic Formula that contains the largest number of good bacteriaof any product on the market -120 Billion, yes Billion and 12 different species of good bacteria.