How Much Difference Do Probiotic Supplements Make, Really?

Today’s almonds have been activated by:

⏰ IN A RUSH?

Today’s 30-Second Summary

If you don’t have time to read the whole email today, here are some key takeaways:

• Probiotics add “good” bacteria to the gut. As to what difference this makes, as it turns out, there’s a lot of evidence for benefits to various areas of health, obvious and otherwise.

  • Obvious ways include better digestive health and better recovery from taking antibiotics

  • Less obvious ways include better immune health outside of the gut (including against upper respiratory tract infections), and better mental health

• Buying supplements is often such a lottery. What’s really in them? Where did it come from? Is it actually in a form my body can use?

  • Today’s sponsor, Ritual, has made every stage of its production process transparent to the public, and they also cut no corners when it comes to quality and efficacy.

Read on to learn about these things and more…

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The Limits of Age and Exercise: What We Can And Can't Control (8:35)

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💊 MAIN FEATURE

How Much Difference Do Probiotic Supplements Make?

There are three main things that get talked about with regard to gut health:

• Prebiotics (fibrous foods)

• Probiotics (things containing live “good” bacteria)

• Postbiotics (things to help them thrive)

Today we’ll be talking about probiotics, but if you’d like a refresher on general gut health, here’s our previous main feature:

Making Friends With Your Gut (You Can Thank Us Later)

What bacteria are in probiotics?

There are many kinds, but the most common by far are Lactobacillus sp. and Bifidobacteria sp.

What difference do they make?

First, and perhaps counterintuitively, putting more bacteria into your gut has a settling effect on the digestion. In particular, probiotics have been found effective against symptoms of IBS and ulcerative colitis, (but not Crohn’s):

• Probiotics in Irritable Bowel Syndrome: An Up-to-Date Systematic Review

• The role of probiotics in the prevention and treatment of IBS and other related diseases: a systematic review of randomized human clinical trials

• Safety and Potential Role of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG Administration as Monotherapy in Ulcerative Colitis Patients

• Probiotics for induction of remission in Crohn's disease

Probiotics are also helpful against diarrhea, including that caused by infections and/or antibiotics, as well as to reduce antibiotic resistance:

• Probiotics for the prevention of Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhea in adults and children

• Probiotic approach to prevent antibiotic resistance

Probiotics also boost the immune system outside of the gut, too, for example reducing the duration of respiratory infections:

Multi-Strain Probiotic Reduces the Duration of Acute Upper Respiratory Disease in Older People: A Double-Blind, Randomised, Controlled Clinical Trial

You may recall the link between gut health and brain health, thanks in large part to the vagus nerve connecting the two:

The Brain-Gut Highway: A Two-Way Street

No surprises, then, that probiotics benefit mental health. See:

• The effects of probiotics on mental health and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

• A randomized controlled trial to test the effect of multispecies probiotics on cognitive reactivity to sad mood

• Clinical and metabolic response to probiotic administration in patients with major depressive disorder: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

There are so many kinds; which should I get?

Diversity is good, so more kinds is better. However, if you have specific benefits you’d like to enjoy, you may want to go stronger on particular strains:

Choosing an appropriate probiotic product for your patient: An evidence-based practical guide

Where can I get them?

We don’t sell them, but here’s an example product on Amazon, for your convenience.

Alternatively, you can check out today’s sponsor, who also sell such; we recommend comparing products and deciding which will be best for you 😎

Enjoy!

❤️ OUR SPONSORS MAKE THIS PUBLICATION POSSIBLE

Supplements, Better

Ritual knows the importance of cumulative habits that make a difference to your health every day. But how can we know what will really help?

A thing about their products is that they’re rigorously independently tested and certified, and every stage of their production (ingredients, sources, manufacturing, etc) is made transparent to you, so that you know there's no "funny business" anywhere along the line.

And the products themselves are optimized, as well! We especially love their "synbiotic+" gut health product—it's a prebiotic, probiotic, and postbiotic, all in one—and its capsule form means it gets safely to your colon where it needs to be, instead of being released into your stomach full of acid!

That’s not all they have to offer though… They also have multivitamin blends tailored by age and sex, as well as products for gut health, skin hydration, sleep, and more—so do check out their full range 😎

Please do visit our sponsors—they help keep 10almonds free

🌎 AROUND THE WEB

What’s happening in the health world…

• Infection with stomach bacteria may increase risk of Alzheimer's disease

• Increased risk of heart rhythm disruption after COVID-19

• How slower breathing really helps against stress

• Study finds elevated fracture risk following use of sedative–hypnotics

• Alarm over lax oversight of weight loss drug adverts that could harm patients

• Newly discovered autoimmune disorder disrupts tooth enamel development

• Yoga nidra might be a path to better sleep and improved memory

More to come tomorrow!

📖 ONE-MINUTE BOOK REVIEW

Built from Broken: A Science-Based Guide to Healing Painful Joints, Preventing Injuries, and Rebuilding Your Body - by Scott Hogan

So many exercise programs come with the warning: “do not try to train through an injury”.

Which is all very well and good for someone in fabulous health who sprained an ankle while running and can just wait a bit, but what about those of us carrying...

• long-term injuries

• recurring injuries

• or just plain unfixable physical disabilities?

That's where physiotherapist Scott Hogan comes in. While he acknowledges in the book that there can be some things that indeed won’t bounce back, the subtitle line goes:

There are a lot of things that get written off by doctors as "here's some ibuprofen" that, with consistent mindful training, could actually be fixed.

Hogan delivers again and again in this category! You'll see on Amazon that the book has thousands of 4- or 5-star ratings and many glowing reviews, and it's because of what it gives:

• First, a foundational knowledge of the most common injuries likely to impede us from training

• Then, step-by-step corrective exercises to guide your body through healing itself. Your body is trying to heal itself anyway; you might as well help it accomplish that!

• Finally, a comprehensive (and essential) guide to train for the strength and mobility that will help you avoid future problems.

Bottom line: a potentially life-changing book if you have some (likely back- or joint-related) problem that needs overcoming! And if you don't? An excellent pre-emptive guide all the same. This is definitely one of those "an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure" things.

Click here to check out Built from Broken, and look after your body!

Wishing you the most well-informed start to the week,

The 10almonds Team