Improve your digestion and boost you immunity part 2

The second important thing that can improve your digestion and boost your immunity along with digestive enzymes is probiotics.

What are probiotics?

Probiotics are live microorganisms that may confer a health benefit on the host

How can they help improve your health?

These bacteria act as balancing agents for non-friendly, pathogenic, gut-bacteria such as Candida or E. coli. When the “good-guys” are not present enough, a number of bacteria-related health problems such as digestive upset, headaches, sluggishness, irritability, cadidiasis (an overgrowth of the bacteria Candida albicans), and even anxiety can ensue.

Lactobacillus acidophilus is, quite possibly, the strongest of our probiotic fighters. Studies show that L. acidophilus actually creates a natural form of antibiotics in the body. This natural antibiotic increases our ability to produce antimicrobial action against the pathogens in the food we eat, the air we breath, and the things we come in contact with. Stress, unhealthy lifestyles, and most importantly, unhealthy acidic diets, destroy our natural amounts of probiotics

“The good microbes – and this is where probiotics come in – keep the bad microbes in small numbers. But they also stimulate the immune system and improve our digestive function. That’s the subject of research that has been going on for years,” Huffnagle says.

Improves digestion problems as diarrhea, constipation, gas and bloating.

 

Lactose intolerance

Ingestion of certain active strains may help lactose intolerant individuals tolerate more lactose than they would otherwise have tolerated.

Cholesterol

Animal studies have demonstrated the efficacy of some strains of LAB at being able to lower serum cholesterol levels, presumably by breaking down bile in the gut, thus inhibiting its reabsorption (which enters the blood as cholesterol).

Blood pressure

Although not a confirmed effect, some studies have indicated that consumption of milk fermented with various strains of LAB may result in modest reductions in blood pressure.

Immunity

A 2010 study suggested that probiotics, by introducing "good" bacteria into the gut, may help maintain immune system activity, which in turn helps the body react more quickly to new infections. Antibiotics seem to reduce immune system activity as a result of killing off the normal gut bacteria.

How to add probiotics to your diet?

1. Yogurt

One of the best probiotic foods is live-cultured yogurt, especially handmade. Look for brands that have been infused with extra forms of probitoics like lactobacillus or acidophilus. Goat’s milk and cheese are particularly high in probiotics like thermophillus, bifudus, bulgaricus .

2. Kefir ( Laban rayeb)

Similar to yogurt, this fermented dairy product is a unique combination of milk and fermented kefir grains. High in lactobacilli and bifidus bacteria, kefir is also rich in antioxidants. Look for a good, organic version at your local health food shop.

3. Sauerkraut

Made from fermented cabbage (and sometimes other vegetables), sauerkraut is not only extremely rich in healthy live cultures, but might also help with reducing allergy symptoms. Sauerkraut is also rich in vitamins B, A, E and C.

This can be done easily at home with any veggies on hand

http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Sauerkraut

4. Dark Chocolate

Probiotics can be added to high-quality dark chocolate, up to four times the amount of probiotics as many forms of dairy.

5. Microalgae

This refers to super-food ocean-based plants such as spirulina, chorella, and blue-green algae. These probiotic foods have been shown to increase the amount of both Lactobacillus and bifidobacteria in the digestive tract. They also offer the most amount of energetic return, per ounce, for the human system.

6. Miso Soup

Miso is one the main-stays of traditional Japanese medicine and is commonly used in macrobiotic cooking as a digestive regulator. Made from fermented rye, beans, rice or barley, adding a tablespoon of miso to some hot water makes an excellent, quick, probiotic-rich soup, full of lactobacilli and bifidus bacteria.

7. Pickles

Believe it or not, the common green pickle is an excellent food source of probiotics. Try making your own home-made pickles in the sun. Here’s a great set of instructions for making your own probiotic-rich dill pickles.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Probiotic-Rich-Dill-Pickles/

8 . Kombucha Tea

This is a form of fermented tea that contains a high amount of healthy gut bacteria. This probiotic drink has been used for centuries and is believed to help increase your energy, enhance your well being and maybe even help you lose weight. However, kombucha tea may not be the best fit for everyone, especially those that have had problems with candida.

9. Probiotic supplement

I think what we call in egypt Keshk is fermented wheat with yoghurt... If I am right then this would contain probiotics too

Antibiotics and probiotics

We inadvertently kill off the good microbes in our body with antibiotics. Since antibiotics are necessary for killing the bad microbes that cause some diseases, they are important for helping to keep people healthy. However, the side effect to taking antibiotics is the elimination of the good microbes within our body along with the bad ones.

“We’re now finding that eliminating all the good microbes from our body results in a weaker immune system, which we believe is leading to problems such as increased incidence of chronic disease, including allergies like asthma,” Huffnagle says. “Once you take antibiotics as your physician prescribed, follow it with some form of probiotic supplement to get the microflora in your gut back to where it should be. Your recovery and your health will be much greater.”

Probiotics and obesity

Another emerging topic of research examines a possible link between probiotics and obesity, and a number of researchers around the country are starting to look at this connection.

“We should have known that probiotics and the gut microflora play a role in metabolism – it’s a connection that’s been known in the agriculture industry for years,” Huffnagle says.

Agriculture experts quickly noted that sick livestock gained weight when dosed with antibiotics, leading to the industry practice of routinely rotating various low-dose antibiotics in livestock feed. Huffnagle says the antibiotics actually change the metabolism of the animals, creating something called “enhanced feed efficiency” – an improved ability to retain fat.

“We take the antibiotics to recover from a microbial illness, but the trade-off is that fat we eat may be staying with us instead of being metabolized and converted to energy,” Huffnagle says.