A Guide to the many Health Benefits of Beneficial Bacteria
Probiotic Supplements
How, When and Why to Supplement
A number of factors are responsible for the lack of friendly cultures in our intestinal tract. Beneficial microflora are reduced by excessive use of antibiotics, chlorinated water, food preservatives, junk foods, and pollution in our environment. Seventy percent of the women in
Health professionals recommend probiotic supplements for candidiasis (yeast infection), digestive disorders (including diarrhea and constipation), gastritis, lactose intolerance, gas, heartburn, irritable bowel syndrome, (including colitis and Crohn’s disease) immune dysfunctions and as a follow up to antibiotic therapy. Under these conditions higher amounts of the probiotic supplements should be used.
For this reason, it is advisable that one should take a proven probiotic supplement daily. Probiotic supplements containing L.acidophilus, bifidobacterium species and FOS with two to five billion live cells (2 - 5 x 109 CFU) should be taken daily just before breakfast or between meals for maintenance. Remember, if the probiotic supplements are not refrigerated and viable, they will offer no health benefits. Also, if these supplements are not taken in sufficient quantities, they will produce no results.
Remember that although probiotics play a key role in good health, they are not intended to be a substitute for a good healthy diet and active lifestyle. All these things work best together and the synergism of one helps the other! Use of probiotics or any other supplements for therapeutic reasons should be taken with the advice of a health professional who has knowledge and expertise in probiotics and other supplements. All probiotic products are not alike and do not have similar nutritional and therapeutic values. The name probiotic does not mean anything unless it contains the right strain(s), in the right amount (potency), in the right condition (viable), in the right formulation and is GRAS (generally recognized as safe). For this reason one needs to know the strain, its viability, implantation criteria, and other features and health benefits. Strain Selection Lactic acid bacteria have a long history of safe use in dairy products. However, some probiotic supplements now contain bacteria, which have no record of safe use in humans or even animals. There are instances of probiotic supplements containing soil bacteria that are not normal inhabitants of the human gastrointestinal tract. These cultures may potentially be pathogenic. It is imperative to select bacteria for incorporation in probiotic supplements that are on the GRAS (generally recognized as safe) list. For example, Lactobacillus acidophilus species and some bifidobacterium species are considered GRAS. Safe, proven cultures are your first and most important criteria for selection. Any new bacterial culture that has no history of prior safe use in humans should be subject to toxicological studies prior to incorporation in any probiotic supplements. We want to know that the culture is benefiting, not harming the host. The bacterial strains used in a superior probiotic supplement should play an important role in: Additionally,the culture should adhere to the intestinal walls and proliferate. The probiotic strain must be proven to survive stomach acids in human subjects. And of course, it should produce natural antibiotics, lactic acid and hydrogen peroxide and inhibit pathogenic bacteria such as: Not all strains of Lactobacillus acidophilus and other probiotics are acid-resistant. Selecting acid-resistant strains of L. acidophilus and other probiotics is the key to the success of the probiotic supplement. It is important to remember that enteric coating of bacteria is a poor and unproven substitute for actual acid resistance. Stay away from enteric-coated cultures for a few reasons. In nature these bacteria are not enteric coated. The process of coating these live bacteria with a protective layer may in fact kill them and reduce their viability. If these cultures are supposed to get into the intestinal tract on their own and be acid resistant, the whole process of enteric coating is not necessary. Probiotic Supplements with Multiple Bacteria Some probiotic supplements now contain several different cultures; many of these bacterial cultures have no safe-use history in human health and nutrition. These bacteria may be antagonistic to each other and may alter the gut flora in an undesirable way. So it should not be believed that if one bacterium is good, multiple bacteria combined together are even better. To the contrary, a few select cultures have been proven beneficial and almost all the others are yet to be proven. L. acidophilus and bifidobacterium species are normal inhabitants of the human gastrointestinal tract and are GRAS. Probiotic formulations containing these beneficial bacteria along with prebiotic fructooligosaccharides (FOS) are considered safe and offer many of the health benefits described earlier. Manufacturing The manufacturing process used to produce microorganisms for use in probiotic supplements plays an important role in the viability of the culture. The medium, the temperature and other associated factors influence the viability and identity of the microorganisms. If the probiotic supplements do not contain the same microorganisms with the same viability, they will not offer the same, consistent, good results. Also make sure that the probiotic culture has not itself been contaminated with other harmful bacteria during manufacturing process and packaging. Make sure the company manufacturing the product has a strong history of providing proven safe cultures (do not let yourself be a guinea pig). Viability The viability of probiotics is not only strain-dependent but is also influenced strongly by their physiological and chemical environment. For example probiotics in liquids including milk and yogurt do not normally survive longer than a few weeks. Exposure of probiotics to oxygen decreases the stability of probiotic bacteria. For this reason, eliminating oxygen from and including nitrogen into probiotic supplement bottles can enhance the stability of probiotics. Guarantee/Assay In order to know more about the keeping qualities of a probiotic product, it is important to know that the supplement is tested for viable microorganisms at the time of manufacturing and at the expiration date. This quality control procedure is important to the manufacturer as well as the consumer. The viable cells are guaranteed as CFU (colony forming units) per gram at the time of probiotic supplement packaging. If the supplement does not list viable cells, or does not list the amount in CFU form, it is not valid. Consumption of probiotic supplements with two to five billion CFU per day is necessary to have any chance of offering significant beneficial effects. Storage, Handling and Shipping Refrigerated storage of probiotic supplements (40ºF) is recommended to maintain the viability of the microorganisms. This means even before the bottle is opened! Just like with yogurt, cheese and other refrigerated cultures, probiotic supplements, if not kept refrigerated, may spoil and lose potency rapidly. However, some probiotic supplements, with the use of new stability improvement technology, have been shelf-stable for two years. Probiotic supplements should be shipped in insulated containers via airfreight to avoid exposure to heat. Viability will not decline with short exposure to heat during shipping. Some companies package probiotic supplements in nitrogen-flushed bottles to maintain viability of the microorganisms during shipping and handling. It is certainly a good idea for these supplements to contain higher potency (higher CFU) than guaranteed on the label. This ensures that at a minimum, you get more than you pay for. Glass Bottle vs. Plastic Bottle Probiotics are “anaerobic” organisms, meaning they live in the absence of oxygen. Therefore, exposure to air is undesirable. This makes glass a preferred container over plastic, which is somewhat porous. Probiotics packaged in plastic bottles can lose potency during prolonged storage. Dairy vs. Non-Dairy Some Candida specialists recommend that individuals who are allergic to dairy products should consume non-dairy probiotic supplements for better results. This of course makes sense. If an individual has dairy sensitivities, suffers from yeast infections and so forth, it is a good idea to minimize exposure to dairy and dairy-based products. Prebiotic/Probiotic Combination Combinations of prebiotics with probiotics offer better opportunities for the probiotic bacteria to grow. They can then multiply faster in the gastrointestinal tract as prebiotics selectively feed probiotics. Since yeast and pathogenic cultures are absent, and the probiotic product has its own supply of prebiotics, this is an excellent choice for yeast sufferers. Capsule, Tablet, Powder or Liquid? Capsules are a preferred form of supplementation over powder. Some individuals find it difficult to measure exact dosages with the powder. In addition, each time the powder bottle is opened, the contents are exposed to atmospheric contamination. The powder is oxidized, and is exposed to humidity as well as to some potential contaminants. The spoon used to measure the powder may also add to the contamination if it is not sterile, as well as adding moisture to the powder. For these reasons, deterioration of powder tends to be more rapid when compared to capsules and tablets. However, there is versatility with powder when using with mixes for children or even for esoteric Candida treatments (beyond the normal oral routes). Capsules add another layer of insulation against the potential for contamination, moisture and oxygen related damage, etc. Consumers and health professionals alike prefer capsules due to convenience and viability. Chewable tablets are a good choice for children and elderly people who have difficulty swallowing and even those seeking to benefit the upper digestive tract. This may be for halitosis, (bad breath) for the esophagus (GIRD) or similar problems. Chewable acidophilus (bifidus does not lend itself to viable tablet manufacturing) is vegetarian (vegan).Those wishing to avoid gelatin capsules may choose tablets as a convenient alternative. Liquid probiotics do not normally survive longer than just a few weeks. Another disadvantage is that microorganisms in liquid medium can mutate and change. If it is in a liquid, do not rely on it. Our Recommendation—UAS Labs Major Products: DDS Probiotics:
Other Specialty Supplements:
UAS Laboratories, founded by Dr. S.K. Dash in 1979, manufactures and markets probiotics with the super strain DDS-1 and antioxidants in the United States, Canada, and many other countries worldwide. They are dedicated to promoting healthy living by providing superior quality probiotics and other nutritional supplements. The company conducts seminars and workshops for consumers and health food stores. UAS also conducts research, provides technical support, technical writing and consulting.
