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New research reinforces health benefits
New research reinforces health benefits of probiotic bacteria
'Probiotics' are increasingly to be found in every day food and drink products. We take it for granted that they must be much healthier than similar versions without added 'beneficial bacteria', but is this actually true?
Probiotics, which means 'for life', have been used for centuries as natural components in health- promoting foods. Many experiments and studies have linked probiotics to aiding a range of ailments, 2, 3, 4 such as lactose intolerance, colon cancer, lowering of cholesterol and blood pressure and, most importantly, improving immune function.
A study just published by scientists at London's Imperial College 1 published in Molecular Systems Biology adds more weight to the argument for probiotic bacteria, demonstrating the measurable affect they have on gut flora. It revealed that when probiotics are drank the bile acids that break down fat in the gut are affected, possibly helping them to work more effectively. In theory, this could mean more fat passing undigested through the body rather than being absorbed, although the study does not prove this.
Professor Jeremy Nicholson, who led the project, said: "Our study shows that probiotics can have an affect and they interact with the local ecology and talk to other bacteria.
We're still trying to understand what the changes they bring about might mean, in terms of overall health, but we have established that introducing 'friendly' bacteria can change the dynamics of the whole population of microbes in the gut."
One new way of getting a vast amount of these beneficial bacteria into your diet is by drinking a unique tea infusion that originated in Ancient China 2000 years ago. Kombucha tea contains 65 million probiotic bacteria 5 per 100ml serving, the optimum amount required to populate the large intestine and effectively dissolve harmful micro-organisms. The gut naturally contains these beneficial bacteria which keep levels of disease-causing bacteria under control, but they are increasingly compromised by chemically-laden, over-processed foods, drink and medicines we ingest and the polluted air we breathe. Supporting and boosting these good bacteria helps to restore optimum levels, aiding the immune system to detoxify 6 the body and maintain a healthy digestive system, as well as providing a useful boost of sustained energy and even physical benefits (anecdotal evidence ranges from improved eyesight to thicker, shinier hair!).
The UK's only brand of authentic, handmade, organically-certified Kombucha tea is Gaia's Organic Kombucha, which launches in health stores throughout the UK in March 2008 and is now available from www.gokombucha.com at £3.99 for a 750ml bottle (£47.88 plus £11.95 delivery for a case of 12 or free delivery for 2 or more cases).
Gaia's Organic Kombucha is invigorating, tangy, naturally effervescent, contains only 2% sugar and just 10 calories per 100ml serving, and is available in Original Green Tea, Blackcurrant and Peach flavours. For more information, see www.gokombucha.com
Example Studies
1/ Probiotic modulation of symbiotic gut microbial-host metabolic interactions in a humanized microbiome mouse model. Martin FP, Wang Y, Sprenger N, Yap IK, Lundstedt T, Lek P, Rezzi S, Ramadan Z, van Bladeren P, Fay LB, Kochhar S, Lindon JC, Holmes E, Nicholson JK. Mol Syst Biol. 2008;4:157.
2/ Probiotics as drugs against human gastrointestinal infections. Sanz Y, Nadal I, Sánchez E. Recent Patents Anti-Infect Drug Disc. 2007 Jun;2(2):148-56.
3/ Probiotic, as well as conventional yogurt, can enhance the stimulated production of proinflammatory cytokines. Meyer AL, Elmadfa I, Herbacek I, Micksche M. J Hum Nutr Diet. 2007 Dec;20(6):590-8.
4/ The immune system in healthy adults and patients with atopic dermatitis seems to be affected differently by a probiotic intervention. Roessler A, Friedrich U, Vogelsang H, Bauer A, Kaatz M, Hipler UC, Schmidt I, Jahreis G. Clin Exp Allergy. 2008 Jan;38(1):93-102. Epub 2007 Nov 19.
5/ Sreeramulu G, Zhu Y, Knol W. Kombucha fermentation and its antimicrobial activity.
J Agric Food Chem. 2000 Jun;48(6):2589-94.
6/ Dipti P, Yogesh B, Kain AK, Pauline T, Anju B, Sairam M, Singh B, Mongia SS, Kumar GI, Selvamurthy W. Lead induced oxidative stress: beneficial effects of Kombucha tea.
Biomed Environ Sci. 2003 Sep;16(3):276-82
Posted
: 01/02/2008 14:22:10
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