PROBIOTICS & PREBIOTICS LOOK AFTER YOUR GUT
HELP LOWER BLOOD PRESSURE
What are Probiotics? They are live bacteria’s and yeasts that are good for your health. We usually think of bacteria as something that causes diseases. But your body is full of bacteria. Probiotics are often called "good" or "helpful" bacteria because they help keep your gut healthy. The root of the word probiotic comes from the Greek word “pro” meaning “promoting” and “biotic” meaning "life".
The discovery of probiotics came about in the early 20th century, when Elie Metchnikoff, also known as the "Father of Probiotics" had observed that rural dwellers in Bulgaria lived to very old ages despite extreme poverty and harsh climate. He theorized that health could be enhanced, and senility and dementia could be delayed by manipulating the intestinal micro-biome with host-friendly bacteria found in sour milk.
BACTERIA IN THE GUT
Our gut contains tens of trillions of bacteria.
Human gut flora contains friendly and harmful bacteria. The metabolic products of friendly bacteria (probiotic) such as lactic acid and acetic acid can inhibit the growth of harmful bacteria and confer health benefits on the host. Probiotics are ingested for their purported positive advantages in the digestive tract and, or systemic areas like the liver, vagina, or bloodstream.
For example, neutralization of toxins, increase of the immune response antimutagenic, which reduces the rate of mutation and anticarcinogenic activities, reduction of cholesterol levels, control of diarrhoea, alleviation of lactose intolerance, and inflammatory bowel diseases.
What are the benefits?

What are the benefits? The strongest evidence to date finds that probiotic benefits include:
- Boosting the immune system
- Prevent and treat urinary tract infections
- Improve digestive function
- Heal inflammatory bowel conditions like IBS
- Manage and prevent eczema in children
- Fight food-borne illnesses
New studies are underway may soon prove that probiotics can:
- Reduce flu and colds
- Reduce overuse of antibiotics
- Treat kidney stones
- Treat colic
- Prevent cavities and gum disease
- Treat colitis and Cohn’s disease
- Combat antibiotic-resistant bacteria
- Treat liver disease
- Battle cancer
- Manage autism
- Lower cholesterol
- Fight bacteria that causes ulcers
- Improve acne
- Help lose weight
Probiotics are live bacteria that are good for health, especially digestive system. Probiotics are called "helpful" bacteria because they help keep our gut healthy.
Probiotics are “good” bacteria that help keep your digestive system healthy by controlling growth of harmful bacteria. This is achieved by decreasing the number of "bad" bacteria in your gut that can cause infections or inflammation and restoring the body's "good" versus "bad" bacterial balance, which then helps to keep your body functioning properly.
Research has shown that probiotics may have an effect on the activity of the immune cells that line the intestine for people with Ulcerative Colitis. This condition refers to an inflammation of the colon. It may also be associated with enteritis (inflammation of the small intestine), proctitis (inflammation of the rectum), or both. Symptoms of colitis may include: abdominal pain, abdominal cramps, loss of appetite, fatigue, bloody diarrhea and mucus in the stool.
What are Probiotic foods? They are foods that contain live and active bacterial cultures. Probiotic foods also have benefit to the process of fermentation. Probiotics are widely used to prepare fermented dairy products such as yogurt or freeze-dried cultures. During fermentation, carbohydrates in the food are broken down into acids by various kinds of probiotic bacteria and/or yeast.
Let’s now look at Prebiotics

Prebiotics are fibres taken into the body’s digestive system, however unlike regular food, fibres can’t be absorbed or broken down into proteins, fats etc. Fibres are an important source of food for Probiotics.
Prebiotics are usually in the form of Oligosaccharides, which are complex Carbohydrates, they may occur naturally but can also be added as dietary supplements to foods, beverages, and infant formula. Chicory root is considered the richest natural source. Prebiotics are considered functional foods, so-called because they provide health benefits that go beyond basic nutrition. Although they are also available in supplement form, prebiotics occur naturally in many common foods with high fiber content.
Synbiotics are formed when probiotics and prebiotics are combined, fermented dairy products, such as yogurt and kefir, are considered synbiotic because they contain live bacteria and the fuel they need to thrive.
Gastroenterology is the branch of medicine focused on the digestive system and its disorders, covering normal function and diseases of the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, colon and rectum, bile ducts and liver, pancreas and gallbladder, Gastroenterology is popularly known as the abbreviation (GI) which stands for gastrointestinal. Diseases affecting the gastrointestinal tract include the organs from mouth to anus, along the alimentary canal. Gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms such as heartburn, indigestion, also referred to as dyspepsia. Bloating and constipation are also common conditions.
Toxins can be produced by micro-organisms, such as bacteria and fungi. These toxins promote infection and disease by directly damaging host tissues and by disabling the immune system. Bacterial toxins are exotoxins and endotoxins. Endotoxins are cell-associated substances that are structural components of bacteria. Most endotoxins are in the cell envelope. Exotoxins are usually secreted by bacteria and act at a site removed from bacterial growth.
Food fibre is also known as roughage. It is the indigestible part of plant foods that pushes through our digestive system, absorbing water along the way and easing bowel movements. Fibre is of vital importance to digestion; it helps the body move food through the digestive tract, reduces serum cholesterol, and contributes to disease protection.
Probiotics are considered safe for healthy people, however, if they occur, side effects tend to be mild and digestive (such as gas or bloating). Probiotics might cause infections, especially in people with underlying health conditions, these may require treatment with antibiotics.
What are the benefits of probiotics. Probiotics are full of good live bacteria, Lactobacillus which is a type of bacteria, and possibly the most common, you’ll find lactobacillus in fermented foods and yogurts which help improve digestion and help build Immunity. Probiotics also help to lower blood pressure. When people take antibiotics to treat different conditions and fight infection, antibiotics can also kill the good bacteria in your gut. Probiotics can help replace them.
Probiotics may assist in lowering high blood pressure, as explained in other sections of this website, it’s a combination of more than one thing that will assist in lowering blood pressure, from the research I’ve carried out regarding probiotics, in my opinion taking probiotics is beneficial to a healthy lifestyle. Probiotics may assist to recolonize the gut if any of the conditions listed below are applicable in any way.
Acne
Asthma
Allergies
Antibiotics
Anxiety
Autism
Blood sugar imbalance
Digestive problems
Depression
Eczema
Feeling bloated
Feeling tired
Food poisoning
Migraines
Mood Swings
Poor skin condition
Very poor Immune system
Weight & Obesity
You are what you eat
