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I remember when I first found out what probiotics were, I was really confused. I knew that they were supposed to be helping out with gut health but I wasn’t sure just how that worked. And then I was lost as of what I should be looking for as I browsed the health and wellness aisles. I had no idea what things you should know about probiotics. Because I’ve been asked and I don’t want to overwhelm you, I’ve put together a list of 5 simple things you should know.
But let’s talk about what gut health is first, right?
Gut Health: Why Does This Matter And What Is It?
Gut health is the term to describe the balance of microorganisms that live in your digestive tract. It’s important to note the term balance here because this is the goal. When your microorganisms are in balance, they aid in the proper digestion of foods, your mental and physical health and more.
Within your gut is the gut microbiome that is the home base for the bacteria that live in your body. This is the area that makes sure food is broken down into nutrients that hit your body properly. The good bacteria in the gut microbiome function in a couple ways: aiding in digestion and keeping the bad bacteria in check.
When bad bacteria gets out of control, your body is more likely to develop disease and sickness. The bad bacteria has the ability to affect your heart, kidneys, brain, and more. A little scary, right? But this is why having a quality probiotic is key and why you should know what to look for in them as they help in establishing equilibrium in your gut along with nutrition that is ideal for your body.
5 Things You Should Know About Probiotics
- Your probiotics should NOT be refrigerated.
I know, at the health food stores they’re refrigerated and it makes it seem like that’s the thing to do. Brands market that these are live strains and attempt to convince consumers that this will be more effective. **Spoiler alert: this is false. If the probiotic isn’t stable on the shelf, how will it be alive long enough to work if your body is 98 degrees? It won’t. - The more strands in the probiotic doesn’t mean it’s better.
If you’ve ever compared labels on the probiotics and seen that one has like 45 billion strands compared to 4 million you’ve probably gone with the one with more because it sounds more effective. Wrong. Not all strains have been clinically proven as being effective. **Spoiler alert: The ones in Seed probiotic have been. - Probiotics alone likely won’t survive the trip to your gut.
Then what’s the point of taking them, right? Probiotics need to be taken in conjunction with a prebiotic in order to survive. In a nutshell, a prebiotic feeds the probiotic so that it can survive and be effective. - Probiotics aren’t just found in pills.
That’s right. Probiotics can also be found in foods! Fermented foods like kefir, kombucha, and sauerkraut are all considered probiotics and gut-healthy foods. So are many yogurts (watch the sugar) and my favorite–kimchi. - You should be able to tell a difference in your body when taking a probiotic.
Probiotics for the longest were like this esoteric thing for me. Like I would take them daily and literally not feel any different. There would be no difference in my poop, my skin, my energy, nothing. That was until I started to take one that legit worked for me. When a probiotic is effective, you can feel the difference.
Ok, so now that you know the things you should know about probiotics, how do you choose the one that’s best for you? I’ve taken the hard part of decision making, label reading and information consuming for you. I’ve tried MANY probiotics and have settled on one that I take consistently because IT WORKS and I can tell the difference.
It’s Seed probiotic.
Seed is actually a synbiotic that has both the prebiotic and probiotic in one capsule making it easy to take.
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