It is estimated that our bodies contain about 500 different strains of bacteria, with more than 70 percent located within our intestines. A balanced level of bacteria is essential for our bodies to function properly; however, this balance can easily be disrupted by a number of factors. Please keep reading to learn some of the reasons to take probiotics for your health.
1. Balance Your Gut
Medications, including antibiotics and oral contraceptives, are common disruptors of our bacteria levels, and the result is often diarrhea, urinary tract infections, or yeast infections. If you normally eat unhealthy food, your bacteria levels may affect your mind, heart, immunity, digestion, and weight. Taking a quality probiotic supplement each day is a simple way to restore your bacteria levels and maintain a healthy foundation for your body.
2. Improve Mental Health Conditions
Research has discovered that there is a direct relationship between gut health and mental health. The gut produces about 90 percent of your body’s serotonin, which is a neurotransmitter that regulates sleep, mood, and other functions of the mind. Low levels of this neurotransmitter can play a role in mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety. Strains of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium probiotics have been found to help improve depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and memory. One of the reasons to take probiotics is to potentially improve the symptoms of a developing mental health condition without prescription medications.
3. Maintain a Healthy Heart
Another one of the great reasons to take probiotics is to maintain a healthy heart. Probiotics have been found to help lower blood pressure and LDL (bad) cholesterol. Certain probiotic strains produce lactic acid which breaks down cholesterol-filled bile in the gut. Breaking down this bile helps reduce the amount of cholesterol that can reenter the bloodstream, which is especially beneficial if you have high cholesterol.
4. Treat Digestive Diseases
More than a million people in the United States suffer from inflammatory bowel disease, which includes Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis (UC). Certain strains of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium probiotics have been found to help improve symptoms in patients with mild UC. It’s thought that probiotics may also have a beneficial effect on other bowel disorders, such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and necrotizing enterocolitis.
5. Boost Your Immune System
The health of your immune system is closely related to the health of your gut. For this reason, a quality probiotic supplement is very helpful to boost your immune system. Studies have shown that taking a quality probiotic supplement can help reduce the severity and duration of common respiratory infections. The good bacteria in your gut act as a barrier against invading pathogens and stimulate your immune response. Taking a quality probiotic supplement each day can help maintain proper levels of good bacteria and support normal functions of your immune system.
6. Support Weight Loss
Another one of the top reasons to take probiotics is to support weight loss. Research suggests that bacteria strains from the Lactobacillus family support weight loss through two primary methods. The first is an increased production of short-chain fatty acids which help decrease appetite. The Lactobacillus strain also helps restrict the amount of dietary fat that our bodies absorb–most noticeably, belly fat. Studies have also shown that overweight people often have a less diverse collection of bacteria in their gut compared to moderate-weight people. While science suggests that balancing your gut bacteria will promote weight loss, the best results occur with a healthy diet and daily exercise.
Finding the best probiotic to provide all of these benefits is not easy. Many probiotics in the “big box” stores only contain a couple of different bacteria strains, and oftentimes, effectiveness claims are only valid at the time of manufacturing. Lakeview Pharmacy’s Probiotic Power provides a combined 20 billion colony-forming units (CFU) of six bacterial strains and one yeast strain that are viable until expiration. This combination provides a therapeutic level of bacteria to help your body realize the greatest benefit. Additionally, Lakeview offers Probiotic Power Jr., which is formulated as a powder to provide similar benefits to children.
