Probiotics: What are they? What do they do? What are the ways to increase them in your body?
Probiotics are natural living microscopic organisms, such as bacteria and yeasts found in your body. They are a part of your microbiome. Your body has both good and bad bacteria. When the amount of bad bacteria is increased, you get infected easily. Fortunately, good bacteria help knockout extra bad bacteria and restore the balance. However, when the quantity of good bacteria starts depleting in your body, it becomes difficult to restore the balance and you fall ill and catch infections easily. Thus, it’s a good idea to find the best probiotics supplements and take them regularly.
The interesting thing is that each of us has a unique microbiome and no two people can have the same microbial cells, not even twins.
Their Locations and Types
The most common part that is linked to beneficial microbes is your gut. Apart from the gut, there are several parts that host good microbes, such as the mouth, skin, lungs, vagina, and urinary tract.
While there are many types of bacteria that are called probiotics, there are two specific types of bacteria, namely:
- Lactobacillus
- Bifidobacterium
On the other hand, the most common yeast considered as probiotics is Saccharomyces boulardii.
What do Probiotics do?
The main function of probiotics is to maintain a healthy balance in your body. For instance, when bad bacteria enter your body and you fall sick, the number of bad bacteria increases in your body, and this, in turn, disturbs the balance. That’s when probiotics help your body fight off the bad bacteria and restore the balance and make you feel better.
A healthy quantity of probiotics keeps you healthy by supporting your immune system and controlling inflammation. When the body has insufficient quantities of probiotics, taking the best probiotics products, such as supplements and food, will help you increase their quantity.
Certain types of good microbes also help:
- Digest food easily and avoid constipation and other indigestion associated problems
- Keep bad bacteria in control and prevent you from being sick
- Support the cells in your gut lining to prevent bad bacteria that you may have consumed through food or drinks from entering your blood
- Breakdown and absorb medicines
What are the ways to increase the probiotics in my body?
You can boost the number of probiotics in your body in various ways, such as:
- Foods
- Drinks
- Dietary Supplements
Fermented products and supplements in particular can provide you with the best probiotics that will hugely benefit your body. Besides, there are also fermented drinks that can introduce extra probiotics in your body.
Dietary supplements are usually considered the easiest and most convenient way to increase probiotics. Since they are not drugs, they don’t need to be approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA). However, it is best to consult your health practitioner before making major changes to your diet.
