Prebiotics and probiotics ▷ How to take care of your digestive health | %% Sitename %% – HIFAS DA TERRA

There is no doubt, Prebiotics and probiotics They are protagonists of health and nutrition magazines and are a constant in the nutritional advice of medical professionals.

Because? The evidence shows a direct relationship between the state of the Digestive or microbiota flora and the immune and neurological systems. It is in this brain-hestine relationship where soluble dietary fibers and certain intestinal bacteria have a lot to say.

Its main contribution to digestive health and general welfare is that They contribute to maintaining balance. The absence of this homeostasis is known as intestinal dysbiosis and has been found as a marker in a large number of alterations such as reflux, diarrhea, constipation, gastritis, but also in other pathologies such as dermatitis and cognitive deterioration.

Update: May 2020/Publication: 11/19/2015
Author: Esteban Sinde Stompel, PHD
Edition: comunica@hifasdaterra.com

Content index

What we eat not only affects our physical condition, but also our mood and mental health.

A study conducted by researchers from the University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA) He revealed that one Diet rich in probiotic and prebiotic foods to a group of individuals for a month optimized brain function, which could be found through magnetic resonance images.

What is a probiotic? And a prebiotic? What differences are there between them?

Probiotics

According to the WHO (World Health Organization), a probiotic is that food that contains living organisms, Microbes and healthy bacteria That, by adequately introducing it in our daily diet, it will produce a beneficial effect by expanding our microbiota (community of beneficial and own bacteria that each).

Prebiotics

Prebiotics, on the contrary, are Non -digestible fibers that favor the growth of the bacterial community that forms our intestinal microbiota.

What is your function?

They aim to balance the intestinal microbiota ecosystem:

Prebiotics feed the own bacteria that already inhabit the intestine stimulating its development selectively and, therefore, intervening in the bacterial ecosystem.
Probiotics add new strains of beneficial microorganisms.

The use of food to modify the microbiota has a long journey in our history. Fermented milk was one of the first foods used to deal with gastrointestinal problems in 76 a. C

Prebiotic foods

Prebiotics, given their chemical nature, are not absorbed in the small intestine, so that they reach the large intestine where they can already fulfill their mission: feed your intestinal bacterial community.

We find this type of fibers in foods such as mushrooms, the Honey, the onion, the asparagus, he rye, the artichokes, the chicory... but also in by -products of these foods as extracts where high amounts of this type of non -soluble fiber are concentrated.

Probiotic foods

Although there are probiotic supplements, fermented foods through natural processes are probiotic foods par excellence. Historically he yogurt He has headed this ranking, but lately they have joined the food list such as the kefir, he sauerkraut wave Kombucha

Prebiotics also help the immune system

Immune tissues of the gastroentical tract constitute the broader and more complex fraction of the human immune system. The intestinal mucosa is a surface that has the intestine and that is exposed to pathogenic environmental antigens (which cause diseases) and non -pathogens (which stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies).

The fermentation of prebiotics by the intestinal microbiota creates favorable environmental conditions for the growth of hostile substances for the development of pathogens.

Therefore, there is a decrease in enemy flora and its toxic metabolites (ammonia, biogenic amines, nitrosamine, etc.) that, in large concentrations, favor the inflammation of the mucosa and alter their permeability, negatively impacting on the health of the organism as a whole.

Prebiotics favor the health of the microbiota, a set of symbionting microorganisms present in the essential intestine for healthy digestion and a correct functionality of the immune system.

Oligosaccharides and polysaccharides: the most studied prebiotics

The León hair (Hericium erinaceus) It is a edible fungus of white meat that stands out for its high protein content and important minerals that usually scarce in the usual diet, such as Selenium, Germanio and Zinc. In addition, it is considered a medicinal species for its content in beta-glucanos, Herithenonas, Erinacinas, Ergotinein and LOVASTATINA, among others.

In its composition we also find non -soluble chitin and fibers That, as we have seen before, help the balance of the intestinal microbiota.

The ERINACINAS and the Herithenonas They are relevant in the brain-hertestino connection since they are studied as precursors of the Nervous Growth Factor (NGF) intervening in the Regeneration of nerve and digestive tissues.

In summary...

Prebiotic diet

To maintain a healthy microbiota it is useful to include prebiotics, substances capable of selectively stimulating the growth and/or activity of a limited number of beneficial bacteria present in the colon.

From this consumption a decrease in enemy flora and its toxic metabolites (ammonia, biogenic amines, nitrosamines, etc.) are obtained, which in large concentrations favor the inflammation of the mucous membranes and alter permeability.

A large number of viruses, which enter our body through food, are implemented a priori In the intestine, so, an imbalance of bacterial flora with the consequent decrease in immune system defenses, facilitates the appearance of diseases. Increasingly, scientific studies show the importance of the digestive system to enjoy good health.

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Take care of your digestive health with prebiotics and probiotics