2908: Are Probiotics Supplements Beneficial?

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[00:01:00] It's another Q&A edition of Optimal Health Daily and I'm Dr. Neil Malek. Hey there, happy Friday and welcome to another Q&A edition of Optimal Health Daily where I answer your health questions related to diet, fitness, nutrition and lots more. You send in the questions and I answer them for you. Alright, I'm sure you're excited to hear today's question. So let's jump right in as we optimize your life.

[00:01:27] Hi, Dr. Neil. My question is about probiotics. I keep reading how valuable they are and how they can help in many areas such as digestion, immunity, heart health, allergies, mental health and even weight loss. I include probiotic foods like yogurt, kefir and sauerkraut in my daily diet. Should I also take supplements? If so, which ones? Some break down in the stomach, some last longer. Some are shelf stable, some require refrigeration.

[00:01:55] Some have specific targets like women or immunity or allergies. The costs vary all over the place from $10 to over $100 per month. How do I get the best benefits without spending a fortune? As I was crafting my response to you, Fran, my wife was watching some Golden Girls reruns on TV. Why, you may wonder? It brings back fond memories. When she was a kid, her parents would allow her to stay up late on Saturday nights and watch the show.

[00:02:22] She says she would usually fall asleep in front of the television set before the show ended, but now she could finally watch them in their entirety and actually understand the jokes. But anywho, while she was watching, there just happened to be a commercial for a probiotic supplement that promised to, quote, help keep you regular. What perfect timing. So are these probiotic health claims really true? We have lots of good bacteria found in the gut. I mean, we're talking lots of them.

[00:02:51] And it's estimated that each person has anywhere from 10 to 100 trillion of these good bacteria in our intestines. And remember, these are good bacteria. They help keep us healthy. And this combination of good bacteria is kind of what we call the microbiome. And what's amazing is that each person's microbiome is different. There are lots of different strains or species of these good bacteria within each person, but in different quantities.

[00:03:18] It's believed there are at least 400 different species of these good bacteria within each person. And it's these different quantities that make everyone's microbiome unique to each person. So what are probiotics then? They are live bacteria that support the health of our microbiome. So they supposedly help support more good bacteria growth in our intestines. And yes, foods like yogurt, kefir, and yucult contain lots of probiotics.

[00:03:47] The trouble is, we don't really know how helpful these foods are when it comes to actually increasing the number of good bacteria in your gut. This is because these foods have to first pass through the stomach before they get to the intestine. The stomach is a pretty harsh environment for most things. So it's possible that many of those good bacteria are destroyed before they get to the intestines. That's where they really thrive. So as always, I have to rely on actual studies to find out whether taking probiotic supplements are helpful. Luckily, there are plenty of those.

[00:04:16] So based on the data I have seen, there are some probiotics that are showing promise for helping reduce the symptoms of certain conditions. For example, there are some that may help reduce the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome or IBS, like diarrhea and cramping. But what about other conditions where the symptoms don't seem directly connected to the gut, like the common cold? Well, some studies have found that supplementing with certain strains of probiotics may reduce the likelihood of getting a cold.

[00:04:44] Or if you do get sick, reduce how long the cold will last. Supplementing with two strains of lactobacillus, lactobacillus plantarum and lactobacillus procaceae, seem to be the most helpful. There are also some data to support the use of S. salivaris to reduce the risk of viral or bacteria-causing throat infections. As far as these throat infection studies go, researchers have only looked at children, so we don't know if we'd see the same results in adults. With regards to probiotic supplementation and weight loss,

[00:05:13] we need more and better design studies to understand really what's going on. Many of the studies are sponsored by companies that may have a financial stake in the findings, like the Nestle company, for example. These companies will create formulation of these probiotic supplements and then give money to the researchers to try them out. That can quickly pose a conflict of interest, pressuring the researcher to find a positive result. Researchers have also studied strains of probiotics on cholesterol and even anxiety and depression.

[00:05:42] When it comes to trying to lower bad or LDL cholesterol levels in the blood, a combination of lactobacillus acidophilus and bifidobacterium lactis may help. But don't expect these to dramatically lower these bad cholesterol levels. If it does help, it may only lead to a modest effect. What's really interesting about anxiety and depression is that there seems to be an association between gut health and these conditions. So researchers have started to examine whether improving gut health

[00:06:10] can also improve anxiety and depression. The research is promising, but what's not so clear is which probiotic strains appear to help. Right now, there appear to be two strains that may help, bifidobacterium longum and lactobacillus helveticus. So in summary, there are many probiotic strains out there, if you couldn't tell already. Here are the ones that I've mentioned so far. Lactobacillus plantarum and lactobacillus paracaceae to potentially prevent colds.

[00:06:39] S. salivarius to maybe help prevent throat infections in children. We need more studies with adult participants to know for sure. Lactobacillus acidophilus and bifidobacterium lactis in combination may help lower LDL or bad cholesterol levels. And for anxiety and depression, bifidobacterium longum and lactobacillus helveticus. And like I always say, we should be careful before supplementing with anything really, probiotics included. As I've mentioned many times before,

[00:07:09] the supplement industry is kind of like the Wild West right now. Supplement manufacturers are creating products that aren't being tested by independent third parties. So they're putting fillers in their products and marketing them as supplements. It's very possible you could go out and purchase what you think is a probiotic supplement, but if we were to actually analyze the thing to see what it's truly made of, we might find it contains no good bacteria at all. Or if it does contain good bacteria, there weren't enough of them to make a difference.

[00:07:37] Most of the studies suggest that getting doses of 1 billion live probiotic cultures may be what's required in order to see any beneficial effects. With regards to proper storage of these probiotics, You're right, Fran, that some require refrigeration, whereas others may be stable at room temperature. It really depends on the brand and the probiotic strains. So my best advice is to carefully read the packaging to find out how best to store the probiotic. The manufacturers should know

[00:08:06] how to best store their products. And as always, if you decide to begin supplementing with anything really, speak to your primary healthcare provider first. Thank you again for the question, Fran. Now, if you want to get your hands on our Optimal Living Daily Workbook and have your question answered right here on the show, send one in. You can email your question to health at oldpodcast.com. Now, if you want to send one in via audio,

[00:08:35] just come by oldpodcast.com slash ask to record your question straight from your computer. Or you can do it the old-fashioned way and call in your question. The number is country code 1-61-ILOVE-OHD. That's 1-614-568-3643. And that'll do it for another Q&A edition of Optimal Health Daily. Thank you so much for listening every day and all the way through. I hope you have a great start to your weekend.

[00:09:05] And I'll see you back here tomorrow where your optimal life awaits. I'll see you next time.