19 Jul Lactobucillus and Bilidobacterium – What Probiotics should I be taking and why?
The short answer is it depends on what bacteria you already have in your Gut. The so called “good” gut bacteria have been used for centuries to maximise health and longevity without science really understanding what specific role they play. We know that our colons contain literally billions of bacteria which exist in a complex ecosystem that is increasingly being recognised as not only supplying energy to the cells lining our gut, but also producing many necessary substances like amino acids and vitamins which keep us healthy.
A good proportion of the patients I see supplement themselves with Probiotics like Lactobacillus and Bilidobacterium without knowing what their bacterial profile is, because of their belief that these bacteria will be beneficial and probably won’t do any harm. However, this isn’t always the case. Many chronic diseases are now being recognised as being correlated with gastrointestinal dysbiosis, that is – an imbalance of your gut’s ecosystem of bacteria. These include to Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Fibromyalgia Syndrome, ADHD and Autism – just to name a few.
Many of these individuals already have altered gut metabolites from the dysbiosis, so adding additional bacteria which produce similar chemicals, like Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium, could prolong or even exacerbate chronic symptoms. Therefore the key to maximising the chance of symptom improvement is to know your gastrointestinal bacterial profile, obtain appropriate treatment for over(or under)growths, then supplement AT THE RIGHT TIME as directed by your health practitioner.
