You may have heard the terms probiotics and prebiotics and wondered what they were. Are they the same? Which one is more important? The truth is, both are crucial and work together to heal your gut and make you both healthier and happier.
Why Probiotics and Prebiotics Are Both Important
Within your intestinal tract is a thick layer of mucus that is your gut microbiome. This microbiome contains close to 100 trillion microbes, including bacteria and fungi along with protozoa. These microbes protect your intestinal lining and keep harmful toxins and pathogens out.
Your intestinal tract not only regulates your digestion but also impacts your immune system and your mood. For the best mental and emotional health, you need a balanced gut. If your microbiome gets unbalanced, you can become moody or anxious. You might have brain fog and trouble sleeping. Microbiome therapy uses both probiotics and prebiotics to ease these problems.
Probiotics and Prebiotics Work Together
Probiotics help your body fight disease. They break down food and turn them into vitamins and nutrients. They protect you from illness.
Prebiotics, on the other hand, feed the healthy bacteria in your gut. Think of them as a probiotic fertilizer. The more prebiotics you consume, the more good bacteria you'll have, and the healthier you'll be.
Types of Probiotics
There are two common types of probiotics including Lactobacillus and bifidobacteria. Both are great for your immune system.
1. Lactobacillus
Lactobacillus provides your body with crucial lactic acid to break down lactose. It prevents and reduces diarrhea and improves irritable bowel syndrome. It can also help prevent vaginal infections and reduces cold and flu symptoms.
2. Bifidobacteria
Bifidobacteria are y-shaped and beneficial. They help your body digest fiber and produce short-chain fatty acids. They also help your body produce B vitamins. They prevent toxins from passing into your bloodstream. If you don’t have enough bifidobacteria in your gut, you could develop celiac disease and allergic asthma.
Types of Prebiotics
The dietary fibers your body can't digest serve an important purpose. They travel to your lower digestive tract to provide food for the healthy bacteria in your gut. Keep in mind that not all dietary fibers are prebiotics. They have to have vital inulin as well as fructooligosaccharides along with galactooligosaccharides. Our Daily Greens 2.0 have a wealth of vital prebiotics:
1. Wheatgrass
Wheatgrass is a prebiotic microbes love. It is also a superfood loaded with important nutrients:
- Amino acids
- Calcium
- Chlorophyll
- Enzymes
- Iron
- Magnesium
- Phytonutrients
Wheatgrass improves your digestion and helps with bowel movements. It is an antioxidant and contains antibacterial characteristics, as well as anti-inflammatory properties. Wheatgrass helps your body get rid of toxins and other impurities. Once your body eliminates all those toxins, you feel better and have more energy. Wheatgrass can also help you lose weight by boosting your metabolism. All the nutrients in wheatgrass make you feel fuller faster, which means you eat less.
2. Barley Grass
The greens from barley grass are typically harvested 10 days after the seeds have sprouted, meaning they're dense in nutrients, including chlorophyll and enzymes as well as phytonutrients. Barley grass has flavonoids that work as free radical scavengers. They get rid of the toxins and repair your DNA. Barley grass also helps you sleep better and improves your mood. It can help ease chronic inflammation in your body. It's good for your heart and helps regulate blood pressure.
3. Alfalfa
Alfalfa is loaded with Vitamin C. It improves your immunity and helps to prevent cancer. It also strengthens your kidneys and helps detoxify your body. Alfalfa reduces cholesterol and promotes a healthy heart. Alfalfa also dissolves uric acid, often the cause of painful joints and gout. Alfalfa improves digestion and helps with bowel movements. It also promotes the production of red blood cells. The B6 vitamins in alfalfa give you energy and help wounds heal more quickly.
4. Kale
Kale is loaded with fiber and water. It helps regulate your blood pressure and protects you from diabetes. It has antioxidants that remove the free radicals from your body that can damage your cells. Because it has a lot of fiber, kale balances your blood sugar levels. It also has potassium and insoluble fiber. It contains calcium to help make your bones strong.
5. Moringa Leaf
Moringa leaf can ease constipation and relieve headaches. It can also lower your cholesterol levels and regulate your blood sugar. Moringa leaf has a polysaccharide that could prevent obesity. Polysaccharides also help your gut bacteria break down starch and lipids as well as proteins in food. Moringa leaf also has Vitamins A and B6 as well as Vitamin C. It contains antioxidants and is also anti-inflammatory.
6. Pegaga
Pegaga has phytonutrients including flavonoids. It helps improve your memory and protect your brain from aging. It aids digestion and flushes out toxins. Pegaga also provides your body with antioxidants.
7. Chlorella
Chlorella is a microalga that's loaded with polysaccharides that inhibit intestinal pathogens. It promotes healthy gut bacteria and improves your metabolism. It can help prevent the growth of tumors, and it also regulates your blood sugar levels.
How Probiotics and Prebiotics Can Help You
When you take prebiotics daily along with probiotics, you heal your intestinal tract. Over time, you can also improve your health. These two work together and can reverse allergic reactions and other health problems. Diarrhea and irritable bowel syndrome may gradually disappear as you continue to consume probiotics and prebiotics.
Your intestinal tract is under assault every day. Antibiotics in food and medicine, along with pesticides and toxins in the environment, can reduce the number of healthy bacteria in your gut and increase your need for both probiotics and prebiotics. Taking a probiotic supplement daily can replenish those microbes. Adding a prebiotic to the mix will feed those microbes and help them grow stronger. Our gut-friendly products such as Instant Kombucha and Supergreens 2.0 are the arsenal you need to get strong and stay healthy as well as feel happier. Find them here.