Bowtrol Probiotics
Probiotics are
dietary supplements containing potentially beneficial
bacteria or yeast. According to the currently adopted
definition by FAO/WHO, probiotics are: ‘Live
microorganisms which when administered in adequate
amounts confer a health benefit on the host’.
Lactic acid bacteria
(LAB) are the most common type of microbes used. LAB
have been used in the food industry for many years,
because they are able to convert sugars (including
lactose) and other carbohydrates into lactic acid. This
not only provides the characteristic sour taste of
fermented dairy foods such as yogurt, but acts as a
preservative, by lowering the pH and creating fewer
opportunities for spoilage organisms to grow.
Probiotic bacterial
cultures are intended to assist the body's naturally
occurring gut flora to reestablish themselves. They are
sometimes recommended by doctors, and, more frequently,
by nutritionists, after a course of antibiotics, or as
part of the treatment for gut related candidiasis.
Claims are made that probiotics strengthen the immune
system.
The rationale for
probiotics is that the body contains a miniature ecology
of microbes, collectively known as the gut flora. A
number of bacterial types are thought to be thrown out
of balance by a wide range of circumstances including
the use of antibiotics or other drugs, excess alcohol,
stress, disease, or exposure to toxic substances. In
cases like these, the bacteria that work well with our
bodies (see symbiosis) may decrease in number, an event
which allows harmful competitors to thrive, to the
detriment of our health.
Maintenance of a
healthy gut flora is, however, dependent on many
factors, especially the quality of food intake.
Including a significant proportion of prebiotic foods in
the diet has been demonstrated to support a healthy gut
flora and may be another means of achieving the
desirable health benefits promised by probiotics.
Experiments into the
benefits of probiotic therapies suggest a range of
potentially beneficial medicinal uses for probiotics.
For many of the potential benefits, research is limited
and only preliminary results are available. It should be
noted that the effects described are not general effects
of probiotics. All effects can only be attributed to the
strain(s) tested, not to the species, nor to the whole
group of LAB (or other probiotics).
