A Secret Weapon for Fighting Off Cold and Flu Viruses
by www.SixWise.com
Probiotics, the beneficial bacteria whose name literally means “for life,’ are emerging as a support system for much more than just your digestive health. In fact, new research published in the journal Pediatrics has shown that probiotics may be useful for preventing cold and flu viruses.
Eating more probiotic-rich foods, and taking a probiotic supplement, may help ward of cold and flu viruses. |
The study, which involved nearly 250 kids between the ages of 3 and 5, involved one group of children who received a single strain of a probiotic called Lactobacillus acidophilus, one group who received a combination of L acidophilus and Bifidobacterium probiotics, and a final group who received a placebo.
The groups were given the supplements twice daily for six months and results showed that, compared to the placebo group:
-
The single probiotic group had reduced fever incidence by 53 percent, decreased coughing by over 41 percent and reduced runny noses by 28 percent.
-
The combination probiotics group had reduced fever incidence by nearly 73 percent, decreased coughing by 62 percent and reduced runny noses by nearly 59 percent.
Both groups also used fewer antibiotics and missed fewer days of school or daycare due to the flu.
Why Might Probiotics Help Ward Off Infectious Disease?
Your key defense against viruses like colds and flu is your immune system -- and 70 percent of your immune system is located in your digestive system. This means that if your gut is overrun with bad bacteria, there’s a good chance your immune system will not be functioning at its best.
"Introducing friendly bacteria into the digestive system improves how we absorb vitamins, nutrients and co-factors, so overall, immunity is boosted," Dr. Tasneem Bhatia, medical director of the Atlanta Center for Holistic and Integrative Medicine, told ABC News.
Fighting off colds and the flu is actually just one potential benefit that probiotics have to offer. Previous research has found that they may also help you to ward off food poisoning. According to one study by Irish scientists, pigs receiving probiotics had reduced incidence, severity and duration of diarrhea after being infected with salmonella. Good bacteria was also effective in protecting mice against listeriosis, a type of food poisoning that can be fatal.
Support Your Immune System Health With One of the Most Potent and Cost-Effective Probiotics on the Market
You can help fortify your gut and immune system health with Nature’s Sources AbsorbAid Probiotic -- a superlative probiotic supplement that provides clinical activities supporting systemic health and wellness through immune-system protection, allergy reduction and effective and enhanced nutrient absorption.
With 30 billion organisms per capsule, AbsorbAid Probiotic is one of the most potent and cost-effective probiotics on the market today.
Studies have shown that probiotics may be helpful with:
|
Probiotics have also been found to help:
Many People Do Not Get Enough Good Bacteria
Many cultures embrace probiotic-rich foods in their daily diets. These include fermented, raw foods that have not been pasteurized, such as:
-
Kefir
-
Kvass
-
Yogurt
-
Sauerkraut
-
Natto (fermented soy)
Unfortunately, in the United States many people exist largely on diets of processed and pasteurized foods, which are virtually devoid of the friendly bacteria we need to flourish.
At the same time, many people take antibiotics, which kill both the good and bad bacteria in your gut, leaving barren territory for all sorts of trouble to brew.
Because of this, many natural health experts believe it is important to take a probiotic supplement if you have recently finished a round of antibiotics, while others believe most people can benefit from taking a probiotic supplement every day.
So whichever method you choose (choosing both the supplements and the fermented foods is best), be sure that your body is getting a steady source of good bacteria. Once your gut is balanced and healthy, you'll have to worry much less about illness, because at this point your immune system will be functioning at its optimal level.
If you do opt for a supplement, be aware that strains of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium are the most commonly used probiotic bacteria in dietary supplements. There are over 35 species of Bifidobacteria and 125 species of Lactobacilli making up the majority of gut microflora found in your large bowel or colon.
In choosing a probiotic supplement for yourself, Sixwise.com highly recommends Nature’s Sources AbsorbAid Probiotic -- a superlative probiotic supplement that provides clinical activities supporting systemic health and wellness through immune-system protection, allergy reduction and effective and enhanced nutrient absorption.
AbsorbAid Probiotic has 30 billion organisms per capsule, with two clinically effective and dominant genera Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus: L. acidophilus and L. salivarius in a 2:1 ratio and B. lactis and B. breve, also in a 2:1 ratio. Each bacterial genus-species has its own specific metabolic activities, which lead to their effective inter-species synergism.
Further, this proprietary probiotic blend contains a strain that survives with or without oxygen, unlike others -- one that doubles its population every 20 minutes so you need less of it, and one that binds to the intestinal mucosa to help reduce pathogenic bacteria.
As flu season is just around the corner, starting your family on a preventive regimen of probiotics now may help to keep illness away come fall and winter.
Recommended Reading
Is Swine Flu Being Exaggerated? What We Can Learn From History … Including the 1918 Flu Pandemic
With Cold and Flu Season in Full Force, Watch Out for These "Germ Hotbeds"
Sources
Pediatrics Vol. 124 No. 2 August 2009, pp. e172-e179
ABC News July 27, 2009
Society for General Microbiology April 2, 2009