If you want to achieve a healthy lifestyle, it is all about balancing out the proper nutrition. This concept is especially true for those looking to boost the health of their gut. If you consume too much of anything, it can cause your digestive system to act strangely. The same is true for health drinks.
While the average person can eat and drink to their heart’s content, the gut is not invincible. When a digestive system is out of balance, it can lead to issues with your health. You may want to introduce probiotics into your diet to boost gut health.
What Are Probiotics?
In your digestive system, you need certain enzymes to break down all the food in your gut. Along with that, bacteria can also help to regulate the health of your digestive system. Throughout your gut, you will have 300 types of bacteria working to keep your digestive system on the right track.
These healthy bacteria help keep your immune system in tip-top shape, and they can fight off harmful bacteria and other bugs in your digestive tract. Probiotics take all that energy from undigested carbohydrates and turn them into K and B vitamins.
You have good and bad bacteria in your intestinal tract, with the good type outnumbering the bad by 85 to 15. If any of that “good” bacteria drops below 85 percent, you can start to feel some physical effects, such as diarrhea, constipation, bloating, and indigestion. In some cases, that drop in good bacteria can cause changes in your appetite.
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Do you want to improve your immune system and gut health? With a variety of flavors, you can grab a refreshing bottle of probiotic shots from Sunny Culture.
To keep the right amount of good bacteria in your stomach, you should consider adding some probiotics into your system. These probiotics contain all that “good” bacteria. There have been many studies on the usage of probiotics, and most have shown that probiotics can help restore that 85:15 ratio in the digestive system. With these supplements, you will regain gut health with the ideal amounts of bad and good bacteria.
THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF PROBIOTICS
Now that you’re aware of what probiotics do for your body, it’s time to discuss the different types of probiotics. Each type can do something different for your body, which is why it’s essential to research the effects beforehand. Here are a few common strains you’ll see.
Lactobacillus
Lactobacillus is one of the two main types of bacteria that you’ll see in probiotics and some fermented foods. Some of its benefits include:
- Reducing the effects of diarrhea caused by infections
- Preventing colon cancer
- Potentially treating the impact of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
- Stops the growth of pathogenic bacteria in your gut
Bifidobacterium
Bifidobacterium is another commonly used probiotic. Its strength lies in its ability to navigate the complexities of the digestive tract. Some of its health benefits include:
- Effective treatment of constipation and traveler’s diarrhea
- Reducing inflammation and eczema
- Some strains can also help lower your cholesterol
Lactococcus Lactis
Lactococcus is a type of strain that most probiotic manufacturers will add to dairy products such as milk or cheese. It has various health benefits such as:
- Helping individuals maintain excellent skin health
- Increases immune system strength
- Decreasing allergic reaction
- Reducing blood pressure and cholesterol
Escherichia Coli
Escherichia coli which is also known as E.Coli is a bacteria usually found in the large intestine. We know that you’ve heard about the dangers of this bacteria from the news. However, those situations result from water or food coming into contact with animal feces.
Rest assured, E.Coli does have some health benefits such as:
- Producing Vitamin K2, which helps with blood clotting and food absorption
- Creates and absorbs iron to increase human iron levels
Saccharomyces
Saccharomyces, which is also known as brewer or baker’s yeast, are commonly used in beer, kefir, wine, and some supplements. Although it’s not a strain of bacteria, it can be used when administering antibiotics to help reduce some of the side effects.
Other strains of Saccharomyces can help reduce diarrhea symptoms and help limit the effects of IBS.
Dosage Amounts of Probiotic Drinks
Since you can usually find probiotics in drinks or supplements, you need to understand the dosage amounts. These probiotic drinks and supplements are measured in a supplement dosage known as colony-forming units, or CFUs.
What does that mean for your product? Colony-forming units are the number of viable and live bacteria in the product. An average probiotic drink should have about 1 billion CFUs per dose for an average adult. While it seems like a lot of bacteria, it is actually on the low end of the scale. Most probiotic supplements contain billions of CFUs per dose, and some even have 100 billion CFUs.
If you want to find the correct dose for your body, you might want to consult your nutritionist or doctor. These professionals can help you figure out what is the proper dosage for you. In some cases, you may need just one type of bacteria for optimal health. However, some drinks do contain multiple species of bacteria in the product.
Whatever you choose, these probiotics can help your digestive system get back on the right track for a healthy and happy gut.
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Too Much or Not Enough?
If you want to keep that digestive system happy, you need to make sure you are getting the right dosage of probiotics. Too much of a specific probiotic can also throw your digestive system out of whack, while too little will not have the best results for your health.
You always want to select a product that contains around 1 to 100 billion CFUs. However, you cannot drink one product and be done. The key is to take these probiotics to keep them in your gut consistently. Probiotics are changing the environment of your digestive system, and it will take time to see some results.
Before you start drinking your probiotics, you should discuss options with your doctor. Not all probiotics are created equal, and you always want to follow the manufacturer’s dosage instructions.
The key is to remain patient and wait for those results. It may take a while to see a difference. After a bit, if you don’t see some results, you can always boost your probiotic intake daily. You want to ensure that the probiotic is helping your digestive system and not hurting it.
Some Signs That You Have Too Much or Not Enough Probiotics
Even in liquid form, it can take some time for those probiotic drinks to kick into your system. You might want to track your progression and write down any symptoms from taking the product. If you are under the care of a doctor, make sure to check in with him or her, especially if:
- Your symptoms get worse
- You are experiencing new issues
- You are exerting food or drink intolerance
- You see a change in your mood, such as anxiety and depression
If you are looking for ways to prevent some of these symptoms, be sure to keep hydrated throughout the day. For this reason, many people choose probiotic drinks to introduce this bacteria into their systems. Not only are you getting all those benefits of good bacteria, but you can stay hydrated throughout the day.
Probiotic drinks can do wonders for your health and help your gut get back into balance. These probiotic drinks are the perfect way to restore your well-being in a tasty and convenient beverage.
Learn More: How to Make Water Kefir
While it might take some time for your gut to adjust to the new probiotics, you know that these bacteria are working hard to keep you healthy.
What drinks are high in probiotics?
While not all drinks have probiotics, here are some that are packed full of the good stuff.
Kombucha
Kombucha is the new hit trend for probiotics, but it deserves some of its legendary statuses. It is slightly sweet on the lips and even a bit fizzy. Kombucha is an effervescent, lightly sweet fermented tea made from a mix of black and green teas. It has been speculated that yeast and bacteria cultures in these juice drinks and teas are great for the digestive system.
Kefir
Kefir is a popular probiotic drink made from the fermented milk of cows, sheep, and goats. Historians say it originated hundreds of years ago in the area we know, referred to as Turkey. There are many reasons why it is drunk today, mainly to bring balance to the gut. Water kefir is a dairy-free fermented drink made from water and beneficial cultures. It is a vegan-friendly alternative to milk kefir beverages and can improve immunity and even protect against certain types of diseases.
Yogurt drinks
Yogurt drinks are healthy, low-calorie beverages made from water, sugar, milk powder, milk cultures, and other added flavors for taste. Yakult is a popular Japanese yogurt drink that is enjoyed in places worldwide. It is packed with millions of beneficial cultures and bacteria in a tiny convenient bottle.
Probiotic shots
If you are not a big yogurt fan or are trying to stay away from dairy, there are many dairy-free probiotic small shots available to try. Most of them are made from the same good bacteria and cultures of dairy and mixed with juices and other flavorings. Some probiotics are geared towards digestive health, some are marketed to help increase immunity, and some studies have shown the promise to be helpful for weight loss. They make for a convenient on-the-go way to get your daily dose of probiotics.
Probiotic drinks
Probiotic drinks are evolving and gaining popularity. Whether your choice of probiotic drink is a dairy-culture-based or more vegan-friendly water kefir, they can be a refreshing and delicious way to drink your way towards health. Wellness starts with a healthy gut, and these beverages are an easy way to add plenty of good bacteria to your body.
Is it okay to drink probiotic drinks every day?
Yes. In fact, it is actually recommended in most cases. However, there are always exceptions. Probiotics and prebiotics are safe for daily consumption since you already have good healthy bacteria in your gut. The harmful bacteria in your body can cause inflammation and make you sick. Furthermore, sometimes, we need to replace those harmful bacteria with more good ones.
We are still just on the horizon of finding emerging information about our gut microbiome, so it is always best to monitor and manage how much you ingest every day. Everyone has a gut flora that is specifically unique to your body, and every probiotic will, in turn, have a different effect on the body. It is entirely okay to drink one probiotic drink every day, although there is no standard dosage recommendation yet.
Looking to boost the health of your digestive system? From elderberry to turmeric, Sunny Culture offers a wide range of delicious probiotic drinks.