Probiotics not just with antibiotics

From my experience, I know that most of you who have heard about probiotics, it was likely associated with taking them when your doctor prescribed you a course of antibiotics. The reason we are advised to take probiotics whilst on antibiotics is because antibiotics destroy the gut flora (or inner garden). We don’t want that!

If you suffer from Irritable Bowl Syndrome (IBS) you will need specialised probiotics.

If you're taking an antibiotic, don't simultaneously take the probiotic as the antibiotic is liable to simply kill the bacteria off. Instead, take them a few hours before or after taking the antibiotic.

But antibiotics are not the only culprits. So are sugars and processed food as well as other types of foodstuff. To combat the adverse effect of damage, consumption of traditionally fermented foods is recommended, and for those of you who are not crazy about the taste of fermented food there’s an option of probiotic supplements.

Probiotics are also essential for optimal digestion of food and absorption of nutrients, and they help the body produce vitamins, absorb minerals and support the elimination of toxins. Probiotics are linked to more than 170 different diseases and health conditions.

Nausea, headaches, sugar cravings and cravings for refined carbohydrate foods are all symptoms that suggest that unhealthy bacteria have taken a widespread presence in your gut, and that you probably need to add some healthy probiotics to your diet.

Nausea, headaches, sugar cravings and cravings refined carbohydrate foods are all symptoms that suggest that unhealthy bacteria have taken widespread presence in your gut, and that you probably need to add some healthy probiotics to your diet.

Two additional indicators that gut flora may have been adversely affected, are depression and lowered immunity. The gut is quite literally our second brain, as it originates from the same type of tissue as the brain. During fetal development, one part turns into the central nervous system, while the other develops into the enteric nervous system. These two systems are connected, hence the gut and the brain work together, each influencing the other. This is why intestinal health can have such a profound influence on mental health, and vice versa.

This might also explain the connection between neurological disorders such as ADHD and autism and gastrointestinal dysfunction. For example, gluten intolerance is featured in autism, and the condition of many autistic children will improve when following a strict gluten-free diet.

Don't confuse probiotics with prebiotics!