Before you understand the difference between probiotics and prebiotics, you should know some potentially disturbing facts about what’s going on inside your body.
Your body is also home to live bacteria. When harmful bacteria enters your body, your immunity system kicks in to help fight it and avoid the diseases and infections it can cause.
If the bacteria thing by itself isn’t disturbing enough, check these numbers. Including red blood cells, there are over 30 trillion human cells in your body. But you have about 39 trillion bacterial cells in your body.
In other words, your body contains about one-third more bacteria cells than human cells.
Probiotics and Prebiotics Help Promote Good Bacteria
Yes, fortunately for us all, there are different types of bacteria in our bodies and the vast majority of them are beneficial bacteria that are actually crucial to our survival. The good strains of bacteria, especially the bacteria in your gut, help you digest food, absorb nutrients and produce vitamins.
Probiotics and prebiotics play different roles in promoting the growth and health benefits of good bacteria.
Benefits of Probiotics
Probiotic food sources, including yogurt, sauerkraut and kimchi, are those that contain probiotic bacteria. They populate your digestive system with healthy bacteria that offer lots of health benefits.
- Crowd out bad bacteria
- Help in healthy digestion of foods
- Boost your immune system
- May help you lose weight and belly fat
Benefits of Prebiotics
If you have a good understanding of some of the benefits of dietary fibre, you’re well on your way to understanding prebiotics, which are commonly found in the fibre of fruits and vegetables.
The fibre in prebiotic foods, including berries, asparagus and bananas, help to feed the healthy bacteria that are already in your system. Other health benefits can include.
- Improved calcium absorption
- Increased bone density
- Promotes the benefits of prebiotics, including healthier immune and digestive systems.
The nutritional specialists are your nearest Herbal One location can recommend natural herbal supplements to promote a healthy digestive system, including our Ultra Enzyme Complex.
If you found this article helpful, check out our recent post about what happens to your body when you stop eating sugar.