When would I really need to take probiotics?

Every day we hear about the importance of consuming probiotics to have a healthy colon. The truth is that the health of the intestinal microbiome requires conscious care since important functions for the overall health of the body are carried out there, and a diverse flora with the appropriate proportion of good and bad bacteria provides your body with the tools for a solid defense system. However, experiments have indicated that it is better to obtain probiotics from the foods you eat and only resort to probiotic pills on certain occasions. Today I explain when, what type of probiotics and why.

The microbiome refers to the collection of genomes of all the microorganisms in your environment, in this case, your body. The microbiota, on the other hand, usually refers to the microorganisms found in a specific environment. In this sense, the microbiota can refer to all the microorganisms found in an environment such as the skin, for example, including bacteria, viruses, and fungi.

The gut has its own microbiome, a community of microscopic organisms, such as bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites, that live within the intestinal tract. But the reality is that the human body has four main microbiotas that differ from each other: respiratory, cutaneous, urogenital and oral. Together, these 4 microbiotas form the human microbiome, that is, the trillions of microbiota that live in and on your body.

The microbiota, although it is also often called the intestinal microbiome, is the habitat of millions of microorganisms throughout your digestive tract, not just the colon.

Our microbiome shapes the health of the gut-brain axis by supporting functions such as hunger, mood, metabolism, and the immune system. In fact, the gut microbiome is said to produce neurotransmitters that affect your mood and cognitive function.

Now, it turns out that your intestinal flora is unique because there are many factors that determine its particularity, not only the microbiome that you acquired at birth but also your heritage, physical predisposition, the geographical location where you grew up, whether you had contact with pets at home, your current lifestyle, the way you eat, etc. Probiotics are large families of bacteria that our microbiome must nourish in order to maintain its health and function efficiently.

 

Types of microorganisms that inhabit your microbiota

The most common bacteria present in the oral microbiota are Streptococcus mutans, Porphyromonas gingivalis, Staphylococcus and Lactobacillus .

In the skin, the resident microbiota is found in the upper parts of the epidermis and congregates in and around hair follicles. This microbiota includes:

Staphylococci (dry in nature, on forearms, hands, legs and feet)

Micrococcus

Corynebacterium (moist nature, present in body folds such as elbows, under the breasts, between the toes and groin).

Brevibacterium

Dermabacter

Malassezia (sebaceous in nature, present in the sebaceous glands and on the skin).

The predominant intestinal microbial phyla in the intestinal microbiota are Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria, Proteobacteria, Fusobacteria and Verrucomicrobia .

The pulmonary microbiome, for its part, is composed of the main species members of the phyla Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, Actinobacteria, Fusobacteria and Proteobacteria , which are distributed in ecological niches throughout the nasal cavity, nasopharynx, oropharynx, trachea and in the lungs.

 

How good is it to take probiotics? In which cases to take them and in which cases not to

It was through my personal experience due to a dental treatment for which I had to take antibiotics for two weeks that I was able to verify two things: first, because the treatment was in the mouth, the oral microbiota differs from the intestinal microbiota and probiotics, if required, must consist of microorganisms that help restore oral health, although, of course, they will have an effect on the intestinal flora.

Second, depending on the health of your gut, probiotic pills may do more harm than good. If your diet includes good amounts of fiber, as well as fermented foods such as sauerkraut, kimchi, kefir that help maintain a healthy gut flora, but also adequate levels of vitamin K2 that is crucial for calcium to bind in the right places, your body may have enough defenses for a quick recovery after taking antibiotics.

 

Supposed benefits of probiotics

In principle, a compound of good bacteria would provide vitamins and help balance the proportion between the population of good and bad bacteria that make up the intestinal flora.

Probiotics may also help the movement of food through the digestive tract by affecting the nerves that control all types of movements in the gut.

Currently, many purported benefits of probiotics are still being investigated, but some of the benefits for which they are prescribed, as we have seen above, include reducing inflammation, strengthening the immune system, increasing metabolism, reducing appetite by increasing satiety or fullness, and improving mental health. There is evidence to suggest that certain strains of probiotics may have the ability to produce compounds that can influence neurotransmitters and other signaling molecules involved in regulating mood. This communication between the gut and the brain is known as the gut-brain axis.

 

According to specialists from several universities, the only cases in which probiotics should be prescribed are:

• After finishing a round of antibiotics,
• To balance a chronic infection,
• For people who need to balance their mood,
• People suffering from diabetes and cancer,
• People with allergies,
• People who suffer from stomach disorders such as constipation.

  

Potential risks of taking probiotics

Probiotics may cause infections and allergic reactions in some people, especially those who are immunocompromised . Because probiotics contain live microorganisms, there is a possibility of contamination of the blood with bacteria or fungi, which can lead to sepsis (blood poisoning), which can be fatal.

 

Effects of taking probiotics if you already have a well-established or very sensitive intestinal flora

In my personal experience, the idea was to take probiotics for a month to restore and keep my intestinal flora strong. Initially it worked, but after 10-12 days I started to feel a buildup of phlegm in my throat and mucus.  I also have difficulty doing my breath retention exercises and sometimes even a slight skin reaction. 

For this reason, I suggest you consult with your health care provider, since if your diet contains enough probiotics, as well as prebiotics (non-digestible food ingredient that selectively stimulates the growth and/or activity of one or a limited number of bacteria in the colon), it is possible that after taking antibiotics your body will have sufficient defenses to restore itself.

In any case, if you feel that you can make use of a probiotic cycle and your doctor agrees, here is what you should know about the probiotics that you would require according to your individual needs.

 

Microorganisms that your probiotic should be composed of depending on the area to be treated

Probiotics that promote oral health :

Bacteria of the Lactobacillus reuteri species, which fight harmful pathogens, Streptococcus salivarius, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum potentially restoring oral balance. This balance is essential in the treatment of gum disease, in this sense probiotics containing these strains could help treat periodontal problems and reduce inflammation.

Probiotics for intestinal health :

Organisms commonly recommended to restore intestinal health are S. boulardii (a yeast), Lactobacillus species, and Bifidobacterium species.

Probiotics for lung health, especially in cases of asthma and other inflammatory conditions :

In several reviewed studies, the strain of choice is Lactobacillus ( plantarum , acidophilus and rhamnosus ) which in some cases has been provided together with an herbal mixture (vasaka root, holy basil or Tulsi and turmeric root) and has provided very good results. ( study )

Finally, the best way to get your probiotics is by eating a balanced and diverse diet, mostly plant-based, prioritizing ferments like sauerkraut, kimchi, kefir and Greek yogurt made from unpasteurized milk, miso (fermented soybean paste), tempeh and apple cider vinegar.   Also, foods with high fiber content: konjac or glucomannan, psyllium husks, apples, artichokes and asparagus.

Make sure you consume enough complete protein, based on your body weight.  And liquid, especially drinks like ginger tea, mint tea, coffee, water or fennel tea and of course, filtered water.