3 Champion Probiotic Foods That Keep you Healthy



    Recent studies highlight again and again the benefits of good intestinal bacteria, which not only give us better digestion, but can increase our immunity, maintain the silhouette and even stimulate memory - and that's just a few examples. But how can we make sense, with a minimum of headaches and costs, also beneficial bacteria for the body? Is it preferable to use certain foods for this purpose, or is it more efficient and simple to content with the probiotic products in pharmacies? And, last but not least, what types of bacteria are useful for solving specific health problems?

    Until recently, it was believed that the large intestine only had the role of absorbing water and salt and eliminating toxins and undigested residues. Meanwhile, he came to be seen in a completely different light. Scientists now know that around 70% of the immune system cells are in the intestines, as well as over 80% of body serotonin (hormone responsible for mood, memory, appetite, digestion, and sleep quality). The new findings have made the intestinal flora (microbe), containing not less than 30-100 trillions of different microorganisms, from bacteria, fungi, and viruses, to be considered a separate organ that has been nicknamed, not by chance, "the second brain".

    
    If the fragile ecosystem of bacteria suffers from imbalances, we risk waking up with various diseases - eczema, diabetes, anxiety, psoriasis, Alzheimer's, Crohn's disease, obesity, etc. On the contrary, if we take care of balancing the microbe, we have all the chances of enjoying enviable health, but also good mood. The major challenge faced by researchers today is to find out which bacteria specifically influence the health of the body for better or for worse.

    Can we influence intestinal flora?
   The answer is yes. Among the factors that can disrupt the state of bacteria in the intestine, implicitly subtracting our immunity, include processed foods, stress and medications such as antibiotics, contraceptives, aspirin, ibuprofen. Fortunately, however, there is also the reversal of the medal - that is, the possibility of rebalancing things with the help of drugs and probiotics, or simply by means of proper nutrition. But these are things we all already know. What we do not know exactly is to what extent they actually feel the positive effect, the products or the food, how they act and what is the best way to use them. In the UK, for example, people spend more than 700 million pounds a year on probiotic products, which contain living bacteria-like bacteria living in the colon. But despite the huge amounts allocated to these types of products, some questions remain about their effectiveness. Can survive live crops contained, for example, in probiotic yoghurt, stomach acid, which has, among other things, the role of killing dangerous bacteria in food? And if they manage to get well into our intestines, can they compete with existing bacteria there so they can proliferate? And finally, if they did all these things, will it really have positive effects on our health?

1.Champion of probiotics: : Kefir


Although probiotic companies have spoken for years about the health benefits of their products, many of them have had to change their advertising policies across the EU after the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has decided that not all the evidence to support their claims.


 A small experiment, conducted within a BBC medical issue, tried to determine which are the consequences of short-term probiotic consumption. The volunteers who participated in the study were divided into three groups. For four weeks, one of them followed a prebiotic diet (ie with food or substances that stimulated the development of bacteria already present in our intestine), while the other two consumed probiotic drinks and kefir, respectively.
To surprise the doctors, the group who daily consumed the fermented beverage called kefir obtained the most spectacular results. Volunteers have benefited from an increase in the number of the entire family of bacteria called lactobacilli, which they consider to be good for the general health and that it would also help in certain specific conditions such as diarrhea or lactose intolerance. It is worth noting that, according to another study, kefir also has good effects in fighting constipation.

2. Oats do wonders for the heart and the small intestine, lower cholesterol and reduce blood sugar.



Other experiments highlighted the benefits of oats. One oily bowl consumed daily for four weeks in a row increases the number of different types of bacteria in the intestine that produce good heart and small intestine. Oats also contain a fiber called beta glucan, which reduces cholesterol and regulates blood glucose. To avoid boredom eating oats at every breakfast, you can combine it with milk, bananas and honey, or with cocoa or cinnamon. It is also tasty in combination with yogurt or kefir, dried grains and seeds. On the market there are also oatmeal, which can also be sprinkled in other dishes.

3. Simple yogurt bacteria contribute to skin health but also have an effect on emotions.





     A study by the Japanese researchers, headed by Dr. Hiromi Kimoto-Nira, looked at the effects on the skin of the Lactococcus lactis bacterium found in the composition of fermented milk and plain yoghurt. After a four-week experiment, it was concluded that the probiotics contained in these products help to hydrate the skin and protect it better by increasing sebum secretion. According to another study, regular consumption of yoghurt also affects emotions, leading to diminishing activity in areas of the brain that control emotions and pain, as well as intensifying activity in decision-making areas.

When and how to use probiotics available in pharmacies

   Although the ideal is to provide as much as possible the necessary intake of probiotics, simply eating healthy and balanced, there are also cases where food is not enough. Probiotic supplements are recommended, for example, when we take antibiotics to avoid their destruction of good bacteria in the gut, or when we are faced with various specific health problems such as digestive or immune problems. As the pharmaceutical forms of probiotics combine several types of substances, not all pills have the same effect, which is why it is good to speak to the doctor for accurate recommendations.

Which fermented foods to choose from and where can we get them?

    We have seen that fermented foods such as kefir can have spectacular effects in stimulating the development of good bacteria. Beneficial are other fermented foods, from yogurt, cabbage and pickled cucumbers, to certain cheeses such as fermented cow cheese, olives in brine, miso paste, or Kombucha Japanese tea. But are these products useful even when we buy them from the store? Following the pasteurization process, meant to make food safer, but also to conserve it for a longer time, bacteria that are so important for the proper functioning of the body can disappear.
In conclusion, if we want fermented foods to help stimulate good bacteria in the gut, it is advisable - either to make them in the house - or to ensure that they have been produced traditionally without going through a process of pasteurization. For example, in the case of kefir, it can legally carry this name only if pasteurized milk at a certain temperature and humidity has been added to a live clot, not if it has been done with dried bacteria - something we can easily check, reading the label.



Comments