Probiotics 101

Probiotics have been trending on the market recently as a dietary supplement to benefit overall heath. But do they really work? Before we jump into this new trend, I should explain a little bit about gut microbiota, or the collection of bacteria that colonize your digestive tract. These little organisms may seem unimportant. But the truth is, they have a huge impact on your health and can effect things like metabolism, immune response, and even obesity.

So listen up! This is what two microbiologists from Baylor College of Medicine have to say on the matter: recent studies show that diet has a direct impact on human gut microbiota. High fat and high sugar diets feed the wrong types of bacteria. This in turn impacts gene regulation in the gastrointestinal tract. These genes regulate things like immunity and nutrient absorption. Probiotics are oral supplements containing live bacteria that have the ability to restore the balance of microbiota in your gut. It may seem counterintuitive to take a pill full of bacteria because often we know bacteria as microorganisms that cause disease. But, when there is a balance of healthy bacteria in your body, they can suppress pathogenic growth, and help break down complex molecules to aid in digestion and absorption.

A New York Times article recognizes a few benefits of probiotics. Such as, probiotics can be useful after a round of antibiotics to reestablish a normal gut microbiota, and can help limit pathogenic strains of bacteria like Clostridium difficile and Helicobacter pylori from colonizing the GI tract and causing diarrhea and ulcers. Overall, this article warns that there is still a lot of research that needs to be done in this area of study before many medical professionals feel comfortable recommending probiotics to their otherwise healthy patients. There is more research to support that probiotics can be beneficial in patients who are experiencing illnesses such as IBS and C. difficile infections. But, for healthy patients, they should consider holding off on joining the probiotic bandwagon. Further clinical studies need to be conducted to determine the side effects of probiotics to ensure they are really as safe as they are made out to be.