The media gives bacteria a bad rap. Bacteria are often associated with illness, and so we’re bombarded with antibacterial products as a result. When we’re sick, we often look to antibiotics to kill the bacteria in our bodies. However, not all bacteria is bad. In fact some bacteria is essential to human life and maintaining a healthy body.
The question: Do you have the right balance of good and bad bacteria in your gut?
You probably don’t if:
- You were on antibiotics and didn’t replace the good bacteria they it wiped out.
- Your diet is composed of conventionally grown produce, grown in ‘dead’ soil.
- Your diet is high in sugar, which kills good bacteria in your gut.
- You drink unfiltered water full of chlorine.
- You drink high amounts of caffeine.
- You are on birth control pills or other drugs.
- You eat high amounts of processed and denatured foods
Good bacteria are necessary for your body to detoxify. Without good bacteria you might experience poor digestion, irregular stools, acid reflux, heart burn, a weak immune system, candida, skin issues such as eczema, etc. It’s possible to reestablish good bacteria in your gut. Start by eating organic produce grown in rich, live soil. Eat quality, fermented foods such as organic yogurt, kefir and unpasteurized sauerkraut. Drink filtered water.
Be wary of some of the yogurts and other products that claim to contain high quality probiotic cultures. May of these products are extremely high in sugar — and guess what? — sugar actually promotes bad bacteria in the gut, defeating your efforts. If you don’t believe me, maybe you will find this Globe and Mail article interesting. Remember that any pasteurized foods (such as yogurt) have lost much of their naturally occurring enzymes and probiotics, so just eating probiotic yogurt is often not enough.
Since most of our diets are not perfect, we should be taking a quality probiotic supplement daily. A brand I like is Udo’s Choice Probiotic Super 8 High-Potency, found in most health food stores in the fridge section. Start off by taking 2 capsules with a glass of water after your last meal of the day. See how you feel and if there is any improvement in your digestion after 2 weeks. If you don’t see a significant change, try taking 1 capsule with a glass of water, about 30 min before your 3 main meals of the day. Don’t forget though, that if your diet is full of refined, over processed, and sugar-laden foods, you are simply wasting your money by buying probiotic supplements. Start by making healthy diet changes first!
Yours in health and fitness,
Roger Nahas
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