You’re not even human! Sorry to start this article so brutally, but it’s true. I’m not even human, either. In fact, humans are mostly made of bugs. Bacteria. We have about 1 trillion cells in our body, but we have 100 trillion bacteria living inside of us. Do you feel dirty? Don’t. The fact is that about 85% of those bacteria are beneficial, and the other 15% don’t do us any harm, unless they grow bigger.

Original source: here.

            In the health food world, we call these bacteria “probiotics” or “flora”, and they are responsible for a bunch of different functions, like:

  • Digestion
  • Absorption
  • Creation of nutrients
  • Regulating bowel movements
  • Helping with the immune system

…and more.

So who would they be beneficial for? Anyone who wants to:

  • Improve their digestive issues (constipation or diarrhea)
  • Anyone who wants to improve their immune function

I’d like to include “weight loss” on that list, but I can’t do so yet. Right now, all the research on the weight loss effects of probiotics is done on mice and rats, so it would be inaccurate to extrapolate to humans. Not that they don’t do that. It’s just that we don’t yet know if they do that.

Where Can I Get Probiotics from Food? 

Some foods have probiotics in them. Anything fermented has probiotics in it. Here are some examples:

  • Pickles
  • Sauerkraut
  • Yogurt
  • Kefir
  • Kvass
  • Kombucha

And there are others.

But sometimes, the quantities that you find in food are simply not enough. In that case, you may need to use a supplemental form of probiotics, on a short-term basis, which is much more potent. But, just as not all multi-vitamins and other supplements are not created equal, likewise, not all probiotics are created equal.

Oh, and just in case you’re thinking “beer is fermented. Can I have beer?” The answer is no. Not funny.

How Do You Determine the Quality of a Probiotic? 

There are really 4 criteria you should look for when buying a probiotic:

  1. It should contain living microorganisms. Bacteria are living things. They have certain functions. They can’t perform those functions if they’re dead. The bottle will actually say “living microorganisms.”
  2. The number of probiotics should be guaranteed at the time of expiry, not at manufacture. Just like all living organisms, bacteria have a certain lifespan. Manufacturers know that lifespan, so they put in a little more because they know some of those will die. For instance, if one strain expires in a year and a half, and the manufacturer guarantees 6 billion CFU at the time of manufacture, you’re taking in a lot less than that by the time it’s in your hands. But if they guarantee that it’s 6 billion CFU at the time of expiry, you know that each time you take the probiotic, you’re getting at least 6 billion.
  3. It should contain proven strains. Different bacteria live all over the body. The large intestine contains mostly bifidobacteria. The small intestine contains mostly lactobacillus. So if you’re trying to improve the small intestine function, but your probiotic has mostly bifidobacteria, it won’t do very much.
  4. The dosage is very important. In most cases, you want a probiotic that contains between 2 billion and 60 billion micro-organisms. Any less than that, and who really knows how beneficial it is.

If You Take Antibiotics… 

If you are taking antibiotics, or have taken them in the past, they have some beneficial effects, but on the downside, they also kill good, beneficial bacteria. That bacteria needs to be replenished after you’re done with the antibiotics. And that applies to both natural antibiotics (like Oregano oil), and the ones your doctor gives you.

Good Companies 

I have no financial interest in any of these companies, but here are some of the best companies to make probiotics:

Natren

Metagenics

New Roots

Genestra

And remember, if your probiotics came from Shoppers Drug Mart, Wal-Mart, Costco, GNC and Popeyes, it’s probably not good. But you knew that already, didn’t you?