Nowadays, the concept and importance of supplementing probiotics has become more and more popular, but did you know that supplementing probiotics is in vain if you lack “prebiotics”?
What exactly are probiotics? What is the importance of probiotics?
How to choose the right probiotics for you? How should probiotics be eaten and how to choose the most effective?
▶The importance of probiotics to probiotics, what is “prebiotics”?
Prebiotics, also known as prebiotics, prebiotics, and probiotics, are foods that are not digested, and their main roles are to promote and regulate the effect of probiotics, provide nutrients and nutritional supplements for probiotics, and promote metabolism. Simply put, “prebiotics are nutrients for probiotics”! According to the 2017 Nature report by the International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics (ISAPP), prebiotics are “ non-digestible by the host, but can be selectively consumed by microorganisms that symbiotic with the host. Substances that utilize and thus promote the health of the host “.
▶ Inventory of six categories of food, what are the foods rich in probiotics?
In addition to supplementing probiotics, you should also consume foods rich in sufficient prebiotics in your daily diet to help probiotics grow and maximize their effectiveness. Usually foods rich in dietary fiber or naturally fermented foods contain large amounts of prebiotics, such as:
- Whole grain rhizomes rich in probiotics
such as: brown rice, potato, sweet potato, taro, pumpkin, yam, corn, oat, barley.
- Whole grain rhizomes rich in probiotics
- Nuts rich in prebiotics
such as: almonds, macadamia beans, sesame seeds, cashews, walnuts.
- Nuts rich in prebiotics
- Vegetables and fruits rich in probiotics
such as: apples, guava, onions, asparagus, bananas, carrots, sweet potato leaves.
- Vegetables and fruits rich in probiotics
- Beans and mushrooms rich in probiotics
such as soybeans, black beans, mung beans, red beans, shiitake mushrooms, enoki mushrooms.
- Beans and mushrooms rich in probiotics
- Natural fermented products rich in probiotics
such as yogurt and yogurt.
- Natural fermented products rich in probiotics
- Algae rich in probiotics
such as kelp, seaweed.
- Algae rich in probiotics
▶Importance of probiotics to probiotics?
At present, health care products on the market usually add probiotics and probiotics together. Through the interaction between probiotics and prebiotics, prebiotics can provide nutrients for probiotics and help probiotics colonize and grow smoothly in the digestive tract. The probiotics in the digestive tract will also metabolize the prebiotics into short-chain fatty acids (Short Chain Fatty Acids, SFCAs), which are provided to the probiotics as an energy source; some prebiotics are dietary fibers, which can promote the function of the digestive tract while ingesting them. Smooth bowel movements.
In addition, mineral absorption, insulin resistance and other effects are also benefits provided by prebiotics. It is not only necessary to replenish the bacteria, but also to nourish the bacteria at the same time and prolong the activity of probiotics, which can help maintain the function of the digestive tract, thereby changing the ecology of the bacterial flora, so that the health care effect of probiotics can be further improved! Really make good bacteria strong!
The British Journal of Nutrition published a study on prebiotics in 2019, pointing out that prebiotics can provide the following 5 kinds of help:
- Helps probiotics maintain the normal functioning of the digestive tract
- Assists with probiotics to aid digestion
- maintain good health
- keep your spirits high
- Build body protection
▶Analysis of the types of probiotics
There are two common types of probiotics:
- Oligosaccharides: Also known as oligosaccharides or oligosaccharides, they are nutrients that are not easily absorbed and digested. They can promote the development of probiotics and beneficial bacteria inhabiting the digestion, thereby regulating the growth of spoilage bacteria in the digestive tract, and being toxic. Formation of fermentation products. In other words, oligosaccharides are like food for good bacteria, which can help the growth of good bacteria, so to maintain the number and activity of good bacteria in the body, oligosaccharides should also be supplemented in an appropriate amount.
For example, isomalt oligosaccharide, galacto-oligosaccharide, fructooligosaccharide, lacto-oligosaccharide, arabinose, xylose and the like.
- Oligosaccharides: Also known as oligosaccharides or oligosaccharides, they are nutrients that are not easily absorbed and digested. They can promote the development of probiotics and beneficial bacteria inhabiting the digestion, thereby regulating the growth of spoilage bacteria in the digestive tract, and being toxic. Formation of fermentation products. In other words, oligosaccharides are like food for good bacteria, which can help the growth of good bacteria, so to maintain the number and activity of good bacteria in the body, oligosaccharides should also be supplemented in an appropriate amount.
- Dietary fiber: Some of the dietary fiber can help the growth of probiotics in the digestive tract by providing nutrients for good bacteria and maintaining the growth of good bacteria in the digestive tract. Facilitates the survival of good bacteria. Therefore, they are called prebiotics, and most of these prebiotics are water-soluble.
For example, corn-derived soluble fiber, chicory fiber, maltodextrin, etc., help the growth of probiotics in the digestive tract and help good bacteria to form dominant flora in the digestive tract.
- Dietary fiber: Some of the dietary fiber can help the growth of probiotics in the digestive tract by providing nutrients for good bacteria and maintaining the growth of good bacteria in the digestive tract. Facilitates the survival of good bacteria. Therefore, they are called prebiotics, and most of these prebiotics are water-soluble.
▶Have you taken probiotics, but you can’t see the effect? How to choose probiotics?
Selection focus 1: key strains
Everyone needs probiotics! Everyone should choose probiotics with different functions according to their own health conditions. We need digestive tract health-care probiotics to protect the digestive tract, and we also need a variety of special functional probiotics to help us deal with different health care needs.
The research and development technology of probiotics has entered a very mature era of specialized strain functions, from the first generation of the most well-known smooth health care, the second generation of physical adjustment, the third generation of metabolic function, to the latest fourth generation of physical and mental functions. maintainance.
Each unique strain has a professional division of labor. Choosing probiotics is no longer a matter of comparing how many strains have been added, or how many strains have been added, but choosing the key strains that suit you, which is the most important!
Picking point 2: Probiotics with probiotics
Many people will ask: Why do probiotics have no effect after taking so long? A very important reason is “prebiotics”. Probiotics are alive and need nutrient supply to grow fast and well. If there is a lack of probiotics, even if good bacteria can reach the digestive tract, the probiotics that are eaten have no food and energy, and they will soon starve to death. If there is no endless supply of good bacteria in the body, the number of good bacteria will not be enough, and the sustainability will not be enough. It is impossible to kill the bad bacteria with more good bacteria, and the effect will naturally be greatly reduced.
Therefore, be sure to choose probiotics that contain probiotics, so that your probiotics can grow more and more well, and achieve a multiplier effect!
Picking point 3: Only if you are willing to eat can you eat every day
Some people are looking for sugar-free probiotics, no added probiotics, and some people are looking for delicious probiotics. Which probiotics have the best effect? However, no matter how effective probiotics are, they cannot survive in the digestive tract for a long time, and with the increase of age, the probiotics in the body have been decreasing. Probiotics are not omnipotent. After ingesting probiotics into the digestive tract, adjust The bacterial phase of the digestive tract tends to become more good bacteria and less bad bacteria. It is a process that takes time. If it is only ingested for a few days, it will not achieve immediate results. Sustained long-term supplementation is the key!
It is recommended to supplement probiotics regularly and quantitatively every day, so that the flora in the digestive tract environment can be fixed and reproduced and achieve long-term stability and balance.
However, if you continue to eat it every day, for the elderly and picky eaters whose sense of taste gradually deteriorates with age, the acceptance of taste is even more important. Natural flavoring can also help maintain a smooth and continuous daily supplement of probiotics. Allows good bacteria to grow well.
