Health Benefits of Probiotics

Probiotics are live and friendly bacteria. In several ways, probiotics function similarly to the bacteria which exist in our gut. If these probiotics are consumed regularly and in adequate amount, they provide several benefits to your health. Some of the health benefits of probiotics are given below.

Probiotic therapy benefits the most in the treatment of diarrhea. Though this therapy is not effective in adults, it has been found that lactobacillus bacteria are capable of shortening the duration of diarrhea in babies as well as children.

According to the data available, the incidence of antibiotic related diarrhea can be reduced by up to sixty percent by the probiotics. Another benefit of probiotics is improvement of lactose intolerance. Lactase enzymes can be produced by the bacterial strain commonly used in yogurt. Therefore, yogurt with an active culture can usually be tolerated by the people with lactose intolerance. Children suffering from intestinal infections also benefit from the consumption of probiotics.

Airway hyper responsiveness and inflammation have shown to decrease by the use of certain probiotics. Probiotics have given promising results in the treatment of human intestinal inflammatory disease. It may also help the neonates and infants by preventing and treating them of atopic eczema. However the study gives variable results hence the effectiveness of specific probiotics in such conditions can not be concluded firmly.

Probiotics help the sufferers of IBS who are also affected by small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). SIBO results when there is an unnatural overgrowth of bacteria in large intestine. This aggravates IBS symptoms especially diarrhea. In such condition the bad bacteria in the small intestine can be replaced with good bacteria by probiotic treatment. It has also been demonstrated that in patients with IBS, a particular strain of probiotic called Bifidobacterium infantis, can reduce symptoms such as bloating, abdominal pain, passing of gas, straining, and incomplete evacuation.

The urinary health may also be benefited by the consumption of probiotics. By restoring the numbers of beneficial bacteria, it can combat health conditions such as yeast infection, bacterial vaginosis, and urinary infection. In studies, it was shown that probiotics, especially acidophilus, reduces the conversion of bile into carcinogens by promoting growth of healthy bacteria in the colon. Diaper rash in babies is a common problem. It has been found that there is 25% decrease in the diaper rash in babies who drink formula containing probiotics.