What are probiotics and why do we need them?
Probiotics are live bacteria and yeasts that have beneficial qualities. They are an important part of the human microbiome.
The human microbiome is a community of trillions of microbes that inhabit our gut, mouth, lungs, nasal passages, skin, and brain. Although we’ve been aware of the microbiome for a while, until now we didn’t realise what a crucial role they play in just about every aspect of our health.
Here are the 10 most important things you need to know about your microbiome:
You are more bacterial than cellular (The human microbiome cells outnumber human cells by 10 to 1 and their genes outnumber human genes by about 100 to 1).
You depend on the microbiome for crucial functions (immunity, digestion, metabolism, neurotransmitters, heart health, bone development, vitamins and gene expression).
We’re used to thinking of bacteria as our enemies, but most bacteria are allies.
Keeping the microbiome healthy with a wide variety of friendly bacteria is the key to health.
The microbiome is the key to weight loss.
A balanced microbiome is crucial to mental function and emotional health.
Stress can unbalance the microbiome in just a single day.
Probiotics are live bacteria and yeasts that help balance the microbiome by supporting friendly microbes. (You can take natural probiotics in the form of fermented foods such as kefir, kombucha, yoghurt, sauerkraut, kimchi and other fermented vegetables.)
Prebiotics are the foods and nutrients that feed the friendly bacteria in your microbiome.
The microbiome is the basis for the medicine of the future.
Sourced from: The Human Microbiome Project (June 2012) and mindbodygreen.com (June 2014)
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