--- /dev/null
+ STUDY FINDS PROBIOTICS 'NOT AS BENEFICIAL FOR GUT HEALTH AS \r
+ PREVIOUSLY THOUGHT' (THEGUARDIAN.COM) \r
+\r
+ Thursday September 06, 2018 @11:30PM (BeauHD)\r
+ from the contrary-to-popular-belief dept.\r
+\r
+ o News link: https://science.slashdot.org/story/18/09/06/2153223/study-finds-probiotics-not-as-beneficial-for-gut-health-as-previously-thought\r
+ o Source link: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2018/sep/06/probiotics-not-as-beneficial-for-gut-health-as-previously-thought\r
+\r
+\r
+ An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Guardian: The gut\r
+ microbiome is the sum total of all the micro-organisms living\r
+ in a person's gut, and has been shown to play a huge role in\r
+ human health. New research has found probiotics -- usually\r
+ taken as supplements or in foods such as yoghurt, kimchi or\r
+ kefir -- can hinder a patient's gut microbiome from returning\r
+ to normal after a course of antibiotics, and that different\r
+ people respond to probiotics in dramatically different ways.\r
+ In the first of two papers published in the journal Cell,\r
+ researchers performed endoscopies and colonoscopies to sample\r
+ and study the gut microbiomes of people who took antibiotics\r
+ before and after probiotic consumption. Another group were\r
+ given samples of their own gut microbiomes collected before\r
+ consuming antibiotics. The researchers found the microbiomes\r
+ of those who had taken the probiotics had suffered a "very\r
+ severe disturbance." "Once the probiotics had colonized the\r
+ gut, they completely inhibited the return of the indigenous\r
+ microbiome which was disrupted during antibiotic treatment,"\r
+ said Eran Elinav, an immunologist at the Weizmann Institute of\r
+ Science in Israel and lead author on the studies. The\r
+ scientists also compared the gut microbiomes of the gut\r
+ intestinal tract of 25 volunteers with that of their stools.\r
+ They found that stool bacteria only partially correlated with\r
+ the microbiomes functioning inside their bodies. "So the fact\r
+ that we all almost exclusively rely on stool in our microbiome\r
+ research may not be a reliable way of studying gut microbiome\r
+ health," said Elinav. In the second paper, the researchers\r
+ examined the colonization and impact of probiotics on 15\r
+ people by sampling within their gastrointestinal tract. They\r
+ divided the individuals into two groups: one were given a\r
+ preparation made of 11 strains of very commonly used\r
+ probiotics and the other were given a placebo. Of those who\r
+ were given probiotics, he said, "We could group the\r
+ individuals into two distinct groups: one which resisted the\r
+ colonisation of the probiotics, and one in which the\r
+ probiotics colonized the gut and modified the composition of\r
+ the gut microbiome and the genes of the host individual."\r
+\r
+\r
+ ** \r
+\r
+ ** Re: (Score:2)\r
+ (by jblues ( 1703158 ))\r
+\r
+ \r
+ Bacteria are are naturally present in raw fruit and\r
+ vegetables and naturally fermented foods, including naturally\r
+ fermented bread. Most cold climate cultures relied on\r
+ fermented vegetables to get them through the winter. Salt\r
+ fermentation of raw vegetables allows the lactobacillus\r
+ bacterias to proliferate. Almost all of the sugars are\r
+ consumed, however most of the rest of nutritional profile is\r
+ intact, including the vitamin C. In some cases the\r
+ nutritional profile is enhanced. This is why viking sailors\r
+ di\r
+\r
+\r
+ ** Bitter sweet (Score:3, Informative)\r
+ (by Anonymous Coward)\r
+\r
+ \r
+ Been saying this for years. I get some people have IBS but the\r
+ reliance on things like yogurt is crazy.\r
+ Fun little tip for a stomach ache - saliva. Let it build in your\r
+ mouth (without water) and swallow in one gulp. Not only does it\r
+ give your mouth a natural way to break down any bateria / sugar,\r
+ but helps to calm your gut. Mouthwash is the nuclear option.\r
+ So much of how your body functions comes down to diet. It's\r
+ interesting they do not go into what foods were consumed.\r
+\r
+ ** \r
+\r
+ ** Re: (Score:3)\r
+ (by omnichad ( 1198475 ))\r
+\r
+ \r
+ The "S" stands for syndrome, which identifies it as a\r
+ collection of symptoms and not a disease. It's a diagnosis\r
+ only in that there are good ways to treat the symptoms\r
+ even when you don't understand the root cause fully.\r
+\r
+\r
+\r
+ ** I guess it's back to (Score:2)\r
+ (by bobstreo ( 1320787 ))\r
+\r
+ \r
+ shit transplants for the health crazed. /s\r
+ Seriously, is anything really good or really bad for you in\r
+ moderation?\r
+\r
+ ** Don't take probiotic pills (Score:5, Insightful)\r
+ (by PopeRatzo ( 965947 ))\r
+\r
+ \r
+ Don't waste your money on probiotic capsules. If you want to try\r
+ to increase the amount or variety of bacteria in your guts,\r
+ there are tons of delicious foods that are chock full of\r
+ probiotics. Olives, pickles, fermented meats like the Italian\r
+ delicacy soprasetta (which might be the tastiest thing ever\r
+ invented by humans). Kimchi is also good, but it will make you\r
+ smell bad, so if you're single, you might want to go easy on the\r
+ kimchi.\r
+ Also, if you use vinegar on salads, try getting some of that\r
+ good cider vinegar that still has the "mother" in it. Shake the\r
+ bottle and use like any other vinegar. And of course, yogurt,\r
+ kefir, that kind of stuff is delicious too.\r
+ I'm not crazy about kombucha. It's a big fad now and there are\r
+ places here in California that have kombucha on tap, but it's\r
+ not really to my taste. Some people swear by it. I notice that\r
+ now when you buy it in the store, they ask for an ID since\r
+ there's a small amount of alcohol in it.\r
+ Also, alcohol is not really good for your gut bacteria, but\r
+ there are more important things in life than gut bacteria, you\r
+ know? Just eat a lot of different kinds of food and you'll end\r
+ up with good gut bacteria without even trying.\r
+\r
+ ** Re: Don't take probiotic pills (Score:3)\r
+ (by ljw1004 ( 764174 ))\r
+\r
+ \r
+ Why would you advise people on natural sources of probiotics\r
+ - in response to an article which said that they're either\r
+ ineffectual or actually bad?\r
+\r
+ ** Re: (Score:2)\r
+ (by omnichad ( 1198475 ))\r
+\r
+ \r
+ They likely contain a lot more biodiversity vs. a\r
+ monoculture or handful of strains in probiotic\r
+ supplements. And they would still probably be ineffectual\r
+ most of the time, except after antibiotic use. This study\r
+ doesn't cover any of that. Of course if you're trying to\r
+ feed the microbiome you already have, eating unfermented\r
+ vegetables makes more sense as they still have the complex\r
+ sugars like oligosaccharides, fructans and so on that\r
+ would feed it. That depends on whether you are\r
+ repopulating after an\r
+\r
+\r
+ ** Re: (Score:2)\r
+ (by PopeRatzo ( 965947 ))\r
+\r
+ \r
+ > Why would you advise people on natural sources of\r
+ > probiotics - in response to an article which said that\r
+ > they're either ineffectual or actually bad?\r
+ Because on the high probability that this new "study"\r
+ actually gets overturned by future research, I want people\r
+ to know they can eat delicious healthy food.\r
+ Remember when fats were bad? And coffee? And wine was good\r
+ for you? And eggs were bad for you? And low-fat diets were\r
+ good for losing weight?\r
+ And chocolate was bad for you? Do you need me to go on?\r
+ When\r
+\r
+\r
+\r
+ ** Makes sense to me. (Score:5, Informative)\r
+ (by Vegan Cyclist ( 1650427 ))\r
+\r
+ \r
+ Most probiotics are a pretty small range of bacteria, and I\r
+ don't know if I've ever seen anywhere that confirms these are\r
+ actually the ones we want on a large scale...especially when\r
+ some supplements have pretty large doses of these.\r
+ From all the reading I've done it seems the best direction will\r
+ be to focus on prebiotics, aka the foods that the microbiome\r
+ thrives on, which is typically fibrous vegetable matter. Feed\r
+ the good ones you've got (rather than trying to implant others),\r
+ and you'll probably be better off.\r
+\r
+ ** This study is done by morons (Score:2)\r
+ (by gurps_npc ( 621217 ))\r
+\r
+ \r
+ What idiot thinks that if you give pills of a specific biome you\r
+ will get something BESIDES that specific biome???? Look, if you\r
+ take probiotic pills, you are replacing your normal biome WITH\r
+ the biome of the pills.\r
+ That was the presumed GOAL of taking the pills. The fact that\r
+ your biome change is the thing you were trying to do, that's why\r
+ you take the pills.\r
+ If you have a blue car, and then paint it with red paint you are\r
+ an idiot if you complain that the car is no longer red.\r
+ There are lots of good reas\r
+\r
+ ** Re: (Score:2)\r
+ (by omnichad ( 1198475 ))\r
+\r
+ \r
+ > Look, if you take probiotic pills, you are replacing your\r
+ > normal biome WITH the biome of the pills.\r
+ The study concluded the opposite (in all cases except with\r
+ antibiotic use). And the results are surprising. What it\r
+ sounds like is happening is that all of the bacteria in the\r
+ probiotic compete for food with the biofilm in your\r
+ intestines. However, the probiotic has no way to supplant the\r
+ biofilm - that's a protective layer that keeps out competing\r
+ bacteria. It just starves the resident population a little\r
+ bit as it passes on through. Either way, more or less none of\r
+ it stays behind and it all leaves t\r
+\r
+\r
+\r