Our bodies – and the guts, in particular – depend on a balance of bacteria to “maintain blood sugar and healthy cholesterol”, but “you must nourish bacteria”. So says Doctor Mehmet Oz—The heart surgeon who has become a day, ardent television host RFK Jr. support, believing in Covid treatment refuted hydroxychloroquineAnd now possible chief of Medicaid and Medicare for the Trump administration – who began his confirmation process of the Senate Friday.
To help this intestinal balancing process, Oz pushed the advantages of both prebiotics And probioticsincluding in his role as a global advisor for the Iherb brand of supplements.
The two were examined recently, including this week Washington Post opinion by the instructor and doctor of the School of Harvard, Trisha Pasricha, who called Probiotics “A waste of money”, recommending a Fiber -rich diet.
So what doctor is right? This is what science tells us.
What are probiotics?
The human gastrointestinal tract is colonized by a range of microorganisms, including bacteria, archaea, viruses, fungi and protozoa, explains the Office of food supplements of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). And the activity and composition of these microorganisms (often known as intestinal microbiome) can affect health and human diseases.
Probiotics, according to The international scientific association for probiotics and prebiotics are “living microorganisms which, when administered in adequate quantities”, can benefit from this Intestinal microbiome composition.
While they are naturally present in fermented foods, including homemade turmoil Instagram Post (above) on probiotics – they can also be added to food products and are available as food supplements.
“However,” notes the NIH, “all foods and food supplements labeled as probiotics on the market do not have proven health benefits.”
This is where a range of various opinions comes into play.
Who said that it is probiotic supplements?
As not pointed out by not more than 1,000 Clinical trials of probiotic supplements, there were too many different strains tested and the results have been revealed reliably that they can be universally useful.
A 2024 review existing evidence, published in the Progress of nutrition Journal, concluded that, on the one hand, “there is sufficient evidence of efficiency and safety so that clinicians and consumers plan to use specific probiotics for certain indications, such as the use of probiotics to support intestinal function during the use of antibiotics or to reduce the risk of respiratory tract infections – for some people.”
However, these researchers concluded: “We did not find a level of evidence high enough to support unconditional recommendations at the population level for other preventive evaluation criteria that we have examined for healthy people. Although evidence of certain indications suggest the preventive advantages of probiotics, additional research is necessary. »»
When you look at the body of scientific evidence regarding the effect of probiotics on seven different health problems, the NIH reports the following::
Atopic dermatitis
Many studies have examined the effect of probiotics on this most common form of eczema. Overall, evidence suggests that the use of probiotics could reduce the risk of developing atopic dermatitis, but could also provide a limited relief. The effects also depend on the strain used, the time of administration and the age of the patient.
Pediatric acute diarrhea
While a great review has revealed that probiotics to one and multi-contract have considerably shortened the duration of the symptoms, another found that it was no better than a placebo.
Diarrhea associated with antibiotics
Overall, the available evidence suggest that the start of probiotic treatment with LGGG strains (Lactobacillus) Or Saccharomyces Bouladii Within 2 days of the first dose of antibiotic contributes to reducing the risk of diarrhea in patients between 18 and 64 years old, but not in elderly adults.
Inflammatory intestine disease
MII is a chronic inflammatory disease which includes ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease, for which there is no healing. In the many journals that have examined the effects of probiotics, researchers have reached similar conclusions – that some probiotics could have modestly beneficial effects on ulcerative colitis but not on Crohn’s disease.
Irritable colon syndrome
The IBS is a common functional disorder of the gastrointestinal tract which has been linked both to the microbiomas of stress and intestine. Overall, the available evidence shows that probiotics could reduce certain symptoms, but emphasize that additional clinical trials are necessary to confirm the specifics of the strain, the dose and the duration of the treatment.
High cholesterol
Researchers have studied the use of probiotics to improve lipid profiles. And although, on the whole, research suggests that using several probiotic strains could reduce total levels and LDL (bad) cholesterol, additional research is necessary.
Obesity
Again: no more research is needed. The results, concludes the NIH, “indicates that the effects of probiotics on body weight and obesity can depend on several factors, including the probiotic tension, the dose and the duration as well as certain characteristics of the user, including age, sex and basic body weight.”
Conclusion: The jury has always been released. Whether you choose to try supplements or not (because they are generally considered harmless, although long-term security studies are always necessary), be sure to eat a lot of fiber as well as fermented foods. This includes yogurt, kefir, fermented cottage cheese, kimchi and other fermented vegetables (as approved by Oz), and Kombucha tea, which were shown by Stanford University research To increase microbial diversity and reduce inflammation.
Learn more about supplements:
- This gastroenterologist says that probiotics are “a waste of money”. Here is what you should do instead
- An expert says not to waste your money on beet supplements – Try instead
- Coca-Cola is the last prebiotic competitor of Soda of Olipop and Poppi. But are “healthy” sodas really good for you?
This story was initially presented on Fortune.com
