J at 02:31, 7 October 2009

2009-10-07T02:31:17Z

J at 02:30, 7 October 2009

2009-10-07T02:30:57Z

Shrek at 10:59, 12 March 2009

2009-03-12T10:59:28Z

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When you hear the word ‘bacteria,’ images of dirt, germs, and diseases probably pop into your head. Perhaps you are already reaching for the anti-bacterial hand sanitizer next to your computer. You know from long experience that many types of bacteria are indeed harmful to us. But not all bacteria are enemies, however. In fact, some types of bacteria—like the ones found in your intestines—are not only “friendly” bacteria but are also essential for your digestive system to work properly.
Like it or not, your large and small intestines are filled with approximately 500 different types of bacteria, some good and some bad. Probiotics are the “friendly” bacteria that line the walls of your intestines (imagine rocks that are covered with a thick layer of moss—the soft layer of moss protects the rock, much like the probiotics protect the lining of your intestines). Other common terms for these friendly organisms include: “probiotic bacteria,” “intestinal flora,” or simply “probiotics.”
The layers of probiotics in your intestines actually work with your immune system by preventing bad bacteria—such as salmonella, fungi, Candida, and other nasty disease-causing organisms—from taking hold in your intestines and making you sick. In fact, probiotics are your first line of defense against disease. When unfriendly bacteria enter your digestive tract, probiotics recognize them as the enemy and immediately attack them. But in this process, the probiotics do not harm any of your own cells. They attack only the disease-causing bacteria, and their line of defense actually enables your intestinal cells to absorb even more nutrients out of the foods you eat. And remember: more nutrients equal more energy, a stronger immune system, and overall better health, which makes probiotics very good friends to have in your intestinal tract.
Probiotics are a natural part of your body, and they play a crucial role in maintaining a healthy environment in your intestines; without them, your internal balance will be severely disrupted. When you take antibiotics to fight off an illness, the antibiotics cannot discriminate between good and bad bacteria, so they wipe out everything. (Other drugs like antacids and laxatives can also wipe out your probiotics.) When this happens, your intestines lose their protective layers, becoming dangerously vulnerable to invasion by disease-causing bacteria. Once disease-causing bacteria take hold in your intestines, they can easily enter the bloodstream and infect any organ in your body. Lack of probiotics causes you to become more prone to infectious disease, digestive problems (such as constipation or diarrhea), and malnourishment.
Other things that can kill your probiotics and disrupt the balance of your digestive system include: birth control pills, steroidal/hormonal drugs, fluoride, coffee/tea, carbonated drinks, chlorine, man-made vitamins, preservatives (in food), and stress.
Non-organic animal foods and dairy products tend to contain antibiotics (which were fed to the animals); these antibiotics and chemicals can disrupt your probiotic levels. If you eat non-organic animal foods, if you are on birth control or other hormonal drugs, if you regularly consume any of the foods listed above, and/or if you are exposed to the above-listed chemicals, then you may need to take probiotic supplements (available in pill form) to rebuild and strengthen your digestive system. 
Also, when you suffer from an illness such as the stomach flu or from digestive problems, you can take <a href="http://www.healthfoodemporium.com/prod_page.php?id=217">probiotic supplements</a> (available in pill form), which contain millions of live cultures—millions of friendly bacteria, remember—to help restore the healthy environment of your intestinal tract.

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 <p><strong>Probiotics</strong> are dietary supplements of live microorganisms thought to be healthy for the host organism. According to the currently adopted definition by FAO/WHO, probiotics are: &quot;Live microorganisms which when administered in adequate amounts confer a health benefit on the host&quot;.<sup id="cite_ref-FAO.2FWHO_0-0" class="reference"><font size="2"><span>[</span>1<span>]</span></font></sup> Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and bifidobacteria are the most common types of microbes used as probiotics; but also certain yeasts and bacilli are available.</p>
 <p>At first, probiotics were thought to beneficially affect the host by improving its intestinal microbial balance, thus inhibiting pathogens and toxin producing bacteria. Today specific health effects are being investigated and documented including alleviation of chronic intestinal inflammatory diseases <sup id="cite_ref-Mach_1-0" class="reference"><font size="2"><span>[</span>2<span>]</span></font></sup>, prevention and treatment of pathogen-induced diarrhea <sup id="cite_ref-Yan_2-0" class="reference"><font size="2"><span>[</span>3<span>]</span></font></sup>, urogenital infections <sup id="cite_ref-Reid_3-0" class="reference"><font size="2"><span>[</span>4<span>]</span></font></sup>, and atopic diseases<sup id="cite_ref-Vanderhoof_4-0" class="reference"><font size="2"><span>[</span>5<span>]</span></font></sup>.</p>
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 <h2><span id="History_of_probiotics" class="mw-headline">History of probiotics</span></h2>
 <p>Probiotics, which means, &quot;for life,&quot; have been used for centuries as natural components in health-promoting foods.<sup style="WHITE-SPACE: nowrap" class="noprint Template-Fact" title="This claim needs references to reliable sources from January 2009"><font size="2">[<em>citation needed</em>]</font></sup> The original observation of the positive role played by certain bacteria was first introduced by Russian scientist and Nobel laureate Eli Metchnikoff, who in the beginning of the 20th century suggested that it would be possible to modify the gut flora and to replace harmful microbes by useful microbes.<sup id="cite_ref-Metchnikoff_5-0" class="reference"><font size="2"><span>[</span>6<span>]</span></font></sup> Metchnikoff, at that time a professor at the Pasteur Institute in Paris, produced the notion that the aging process results from the activity of putrefactive (proteolytic) microbes producing toxic substances in the large bowel. Proteolytic bacteria such as clostridia, which are part of the normal gut flora, produce toxic substances including phenols, indols and ammonia from the digestion of proteins. According to Metchnikoff these compounds were responsible for what he called &quot;intestinal auto-intoxication&quot;, which caused the physical changes associated with old age. It was at that time known that milk fermented with lactic-acid bacteria inhibits the growth of proteolytic bacteria because of the low pH produced by the fermentation of lactose. Metchnikoff had also observed that certain rural populations in Europe, for example in Bulgaria and the Russian Steppes who lived largely on milk fermented by lactic-acid bacteria were exceptionally long lived. Based on these facts, Metchnikoff proposed that consumption of fermented milk would &quot;seed&quot; the intestine with harmless lactic-acid bacteria and decrease the intestinal pH and that this would suppress the growth of proteolytic bacteria. Metchnikoff himself introduced in his diet sour milk fermented with the bacteria he called &quot;Bulgarian Bacillus&quot; and found his health benefited. Friends in Paris soon followed his example and physicians began prescribing the sour milk diet for their patients.<sup id="cite_ref-Vaughan_6-0" class="reference"><font size="2"><span>[</span>7<span>]</span></font></sup></p>
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 <h2><span id="External_links" class="mw-headline">External links</span></h2>
 <ul>
-     <li><a class="external text" href="http://www.isapp.net" rel="nofollow">International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics</a> </li>
+     <li><a class="external text" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.isapp.net">International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics</a> </li>
-     <li><a class="external text" href="http://www.nationaldairycouncil.org/NationalDairyCouncil/Health/Digest/dcd76-1Page2.htm" rel="nofollow">Probiotics: Considerations for Human Health</a> </li>
+     <li><a class="external text" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.nationaldairycouncil.org/NationalDairyCouncil/Health/Digest/dcd76-1Page2.htm">Probiotics: Considerations for Human Health</a> </li>
-     <li><a class="external text" href="http://nccam.nih.gov/news/newsletter/2006_summer/bacteria.htm" rel="nofollow">Getting To Know &quot;Friendly Bacteria&quot;</a> </li>
+     <li><a class="external text" rel="nofollow" href="http://nccam.nih.gov/news/newsletter/2006_summer/bacteria.htm">Getting To Know &quot;Friendly Bacteria&quot;</a> </li>
-     <li><a class="external text" href="http://www.gutflora.org" rel="nofollow">GutFlora.org: New developments and general information on probiotics</a> </li>
+     <li><a class="external text" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.gutflora.org">GutFlora.org: New developments and general information on probiotics</a> </li>
-     <li><a class="external text" href="http://www.dairycouncilofca.org/PDFs/probiotics.pdf" rel="nofollow">Probiotics: Friendly Bacteria With a Host of Benefits</a> </li>
+     <li><a class="external text" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.dairycouncilofca.org/PDFs/probiotics.pdf">Probiotics: Friendly Bacteria With a Host of Benefits</a> </li>
-     <li><a class="external text" href="http://ific.org/publications/factsheets/preprobioticsfs.cfm" rel="nofollow">International Food Information Council</a> </li>
+     <li><a class="external text" rel="nofollow" href="http://ific.org/publications/factsheets/preprobioticsfs.cfm">International Food Information Council</a> </li>
-     <li><a class="external text" href="http://aboutyogurt.com/lacYogurt/Probiotics.pdf" rel="nofollow">National Yogurt Association</a> </li>
+     <li><a class="external text" rel="nofollow" href="http://aboutyogurt.com/lacYogurt/Probiotics.pdf">National Yogurt Association</a> </li>
-     <li><a class="external text" href="http://whyfiles.org/302gut_flora/index.php?g=1.txt" rel="nofollow">WhyFiles.org</a>: Web magazine feature about probiotics </li>
+     <li><a class="external text" rel="nofollow" href="http://whyfiles.org/302gut_flora/index.php?g=1.txt">WhyFiles.org</a>: Web magazine feature about probiotics </li>
-     <li><a class="external text" href="http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20090406/probiotics_anxiety_090406/20090406?hub=Health" rel="nofollow">Probiotic may ease fatigue syndrome anxiety</a> </li>
+     <li><a class="external text" rel="nofollow" href="http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20090406/probiotics_anxiety_090406/20090406?hub=Health">Probiotic may ease fatigue syndrome anxiety</a> </li>
 </ul>

Probiotics - Revision history

J at 02:31, 7 October 2009

J at 02:30, 7 October 2009

Shrek at 10:59, 12 March 2009