Does ingesting billions of bacteria sound like a bad idea? If you said yes, that’s certainly a fair answer. But if the bacteria are probiotics, there are some surprising benefits you may not know about.
Although bacteria have a reputation for being harmful, there are actually some highly beneficial strains of bacteria.
When we talk about the surprising benefits of probiotics, we're talking about what those healthy bacteria can do for your body. It is crucial to understand that these benefits are from probiotics that are safe and of the highest quality.
There are many so-called probiotics available that are dubious, and these products will NOT have the benefits we’re about to discuss.
At Natren, our commitment to the highest levels of safety and efficacy ensures that you get the quality you want.
Here are 10 surprising benefits of probiotics:
1. Optimize digestion
If you’ve heard of probiotics, this may be one benefit you know about: probiotics are known for their ability to help optimize your digestive process. For anyone who has suffered from constipation, you’ll be pleased to know that probiotics promote regularity.
Constipation is not only uncomfortable but can be dangerous as well. People with constipation can develop hemorrhoids, anal fissures, impaction, and even prolapse.
One primary digestive benefit of probiotics like Megadophilus is that they can help inhibit the growth of bad bacteria.
Some people have found they are able to rely less on antacids because probiotics can stimulate healthy digestion. There are a variety of probiotics that can specifically aid in the digestion of proteins, carbohydrates, and dairy.
2. Alleviate gas
Not only can probiotics help to optimize your digestion, but they can also be useful in diminishing uncomfortable digestive side effects like excess gas and bloating. Our probiotics like Bifido Factor are able to help ease discomfort by aiding the functions of the large intestines.
It's in the colon and large intestines that most of our digestion takes place, so keeping your intestinal microbiota well-balanced is vital.
3. Lower cholesterol
One surprising benefit of probiotics is their potential to help lower cholesterol levels. High cholesterol levels are dangerous because cholesterol can prevent our hearts and brains from getting enough oxygenated blood. This can potentially lead to a heart attack or stroke: 2 primary causes of death.
Probiotics are able to help some people lower their cholesterol levels, or help maintain healthy cholesterol levels. A scientific review of 30 studies indicated that probiotics can aid in reducing total cholesterol as well as LDL cholesterol (“bad” cholesterol).
4. Diminish immune sensitivities
While you may know that probiotics are helpful for digestion, a surprising benefit of probiotics is their effect on immune oversensitivity.
Not only can probiotics help improve your own health, but taking certain probiotics during pregnancy can have health benefits for your child(ren).
For example, research suggests that a mother may be able to lessen the chances of her baby having an immune over-reaction like eczema by taking the right supplements during pregnancy and while breastfeeding. We have several probiotics available for expectant moms and infants.
5. Aid in infant health
Probiotics are not just for adults.
While it may sound surprising, probiotics can be given to an infant from day 1 to encourage health benefits. Probiotics have been shown to support an infant’s gastrointestinal system and a healthy digestive environment for both breastfed babies and formula-fed babies.
Natren is the only company in the world that has launched a specific healthy bacteria for infants.
While many companies may say they have probiotics for infants, what they offer is not the same as probiotics that were created specifically for infants’ own, unique needs.
6. Help facilitate weight loss
Research shows that probiotics may be able to help facilitate weight loss. A recent meta-analysis indicated that probiotics "resulted in a significantly larger reduction in body weight […..] compared with placebo".
Although the effects in this study were fairly small, they are positive and do indicate the potential for us to learn more about how probiotics may help with weight loss and reduction of BMI.
Other research indicated that expectant mothers who took probiotics for four weeks before their due date were less likely to have children with excessive weight gain in the first two years of life, compared to expectant mothers who took placebos.
7. Provide relief from yeast overgrowth
Many women suffer from yeast overgrowth, and although you may think you need to turn to traditional yeast medication, you may be surprised to learn that probiotics may help.
The dual system GY-NA TREN is a homeopathic treatment that contains both a vaginal homeopathic treatment that can provide relief from yeast overgrowth, as well as an oral probiotic supplement which can help alleviate yeast overgrowth from the source and return to a balance of the right microbiota.
8. Produce hydrogen peroxide
Many people do not know that bacteria produce hydrogen peroxide. Hydrogen peroxide is not just something you buy to clean cuts and scrapes, it actually has an important role in maintaining cell health in our bodies.
A surprising benefit of probiotics is their ability to produce more of this helpful hydrogen peroxide. For instance, Natren’s Megadophilus stimulates the production of hydrogen peroxide which can inhibit the growth of harmful bacteria. This supports the health of the small intestines.
Similarly, Health Trinity can increase hydrogen peroxide production as well.
9. Offer a spa-quality facial treatment
Another surprising benefit of probiotics is that they can be used on your skin too. Many spas are now offering facial treatments with probiotics masks, but you can save a substantial amount of money by making your own probiotic face mask.
When you combine oral probiotics with topical applications, you get the best combination to produce beautiful skin. You can access the face mask recipe here, which incorporates our DIGESTA-LAC probiotic.
10. Boost the health of your favorite 4-legged friend
This may come as a real surprise, but probiotics can be great for pets as well. We offer probiotics specially formulated for cats, dogs, and horses to optimize their health. Learn more about our pet probiotics here.
Quality of Probiotics Matters!
Probiotics have a range of surprising benefits from aiding with digestion to producing hydrogen peroxide.
However, it’s important to understand that probiotics can also vary substantially in their quality.
At Natren, our quality is so important that we chose to undergo the most stringent international manufacturing quality control process. We take our products as seriously as you take your health, and are committed to the utmost excellence in our probiotics.
Our probiotic products are formulated with over 35 years of detailed, comprehensive research from leading scientists. We’ve developed probiotic products that are free of artificial colors and GMOs, made in the USA, and 100% potency guaranteed for each strain.
This is a promise that we are proud to be able to make, and which sets us apart from other probiotic products. We manufacture, store and ship our products to preserve the quality and quantity of our probiotics to ensure that our customers get what they are paying for. You can view all our probiotics here.
