By Usher Brecher

Probiotics have been a topic of growing interest in the past decade, especially as consumers – increasingly wary of synthetic chemicals and processed foods – look for natural health alternatives. For those who don’t know, probiotics are live microorganisms with beneficial properties that protect the body from ingested pathogens. In a world full of bacteria, probiotics are the good guys. They reside in the digestive tract and consume harmful bacteria, helping us to maintain a strong and healthy body, including boosts to digestion, the immune system, and skin care. Here are a few benefits that probiotics provide:

Probiotics improve digestion

At birth, the body is a blank canvas for all manner of bacteria. Over time, the digestive tract hosts many different species of bacteria, and serves as a battlefield for the constant fight between probiotics and unwanted disease-causing bacteria and fungi. Harmful bacteria cling to our intestinal walls,

preventing us from absorbing important nutrients. Inadequate absorption of vitamins and nutrients can result in a variety of complications, ranging from low energy to severe illness. Reinforcing the probiotics in our system helps to ensure that we properly and efficiently digest our food. Probiotics also help treat constipation, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, and diarrhea. The strongest probiotic supplements have a high CFU (colony-forming unit) count, in the range of 5 billion CFUs or greater, to effectively combat toxins.

Probiotics support the immune system

When we get sick, antibiotics are sometimes necessary to help us fight off the infection. Unfortunately, antibiotics kill bacteria without discriminating; the good stuff is wiped out with the bad, leaving us vulnerable to further infections from fungi and invading bacteria. For example, ear infections and yeast infections are common side-effects of antibiotic use. These diseases take advantage of our weakened defenses, thriving when our probiotic count is low. Taking probiotics after an infection is an effective way to keep harmful bacteria from establishing dominance in the body again. To ensure superior protection from pathogens, look for supplements containing multiple strains of probiotics. Even the good guys need backup now and then.

Probiotics can relieve skin problems

Our skin can give us an external indication of an internal problem. Rashes and other breakouts are sometimes caused by our body’s response to foreign pathogens that invade the body and aggravate it. Probiotics provide the necessary immune system boost to ward off harmful bacteria and fungi that are the cause of problems like athlete’s foot and eczema. Probiotics not only prevent skin complications, they can minimize the severity of allergic reactions and soothe the itching and burning that may accompany them. To properly treat these conditions, a proper diet and care regimen should always accompany the use of probiotics. Because some conditions require long-term treatment, find a probiotic supplement that will remain potent until the expiration date on the container. For optimal results, avoid probiotic supplements that are not guaranteed to retain their maximum strength beyond the day they were manufactured.

– Usher Brecher is a longtime user of probiotics, and the creator and founder of his own probiotics formula, ProDermix