April 28, 2014
Sometimes a piece of news comes along which sounds too good to be true, like a glass of red wine being good for your health. Well, that happened again last month at a meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS), where a study was presented showing that not only is dark chocolate good for your health, but the reason it is so good for you may be due to our friend, the humble probiotic. Now that’s news that we like to hear! Scientists have for a long time believed that chocolate has beneficial properties, but have never been quite sure.... [Read More...]
The post Probiotics and Chocolate – The Perfect Combination? appeared first on Natren Probiotics Blog.
March 17, 2014
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! A day of hazy celebration that also brings one of the most unlikely vegetable heroes to the dinner table – the humble cabbage. Often ignored, the cabbage is not always the most popular vegetable in the produce isle. However, it is one of the most nutritious vegetables you will find. Did you know that: Cabbage is an incredibly rich source of Vitamin C and Vitamin K. In fact, one cup of this veggie provides you with around 90% of your recommended daily intake of Vitamin C and Vitamin K. It is also a great source of.... [Read More...]
The post In Defense of the Cabbage: Nature’s Underrated Super-Food appeared first on Natren Probiotics Blog.
December 04, 2013
Passing gas is perfectly normal, although a bit embarrassing when you’re in a public place! The average person produces 400 to 2400 milliliters of gas a day and passes around 30 to 120 milliliters a day. That’s a lot of gas! What causes flatulence in the first place? Several things may play a role such as swallowed air and the breakdown of indigestible carbohydrates, usually fiber, caused by bad bacteria in your gut. If you eat a meal too fast, sip liquid through a straw, drink a carbonated beverage, chew gum or talk while you’re eating, you suck in air.... [Read More...]
The post Silent Nights – Getting to Grips with Gas appeared first on Natren Probiotics Blog.
November 28, 2013
Thanksgiving is a time to express gratitude for all you have and to celebrate family and the company of friends. Of course, we should be grateful for every day, but Thanksgiving offers an opportunity to share our gratitude with others – and enjoy a bountiful meal at the same time. Ah, the taste of freshly-carved turkey and rich gravy, mashed potatoes, dressing and a touch of tart from the cranberries! It’s a meal to remember long after the dishes have been washed and put away. Of course, you want those memories to be pleasant ones, not marred by digestive upset.... [Read More...]
The post Giving Thanks…. For Great Digestive Health appeared first on Natren Probiotics Blog.
November 18, 2013
The holidays are a chance to give thanks – and eat! Most people overindulge on Thanksgiving. In fact, according to the American Council on Exercise, the average person eats a whopping 3,000 calories when they sit down to the table at Thanksgiving. In practical terms, you’d have to walk almost 13 hours at a moderate pace to burn off the effects of that meal! Since most of us don’t want to walk that long or far, it’s best to practice a little moderation. Fortunately, there are simple ways to cut back the number of calories you eat on Thanksgiving without.... [Read More...]
The post Eating Through the Holidays appeared first on Natren Probiotics Blog.
October 14, 2013
Last week we highlighted the importance of having probiotics in your diet to create a healthy gut flora balance, and also ensuring that when you do consume probiotics, they count and deliver the benefits that you are expecting. We call these “functional foods”. A functional food is one that provides health benefits, not just nutritional benefits. Classic fermented functional foods such as sauerkraut, kefir and yogurt are often praised for their probiotic benefits, but many times they fall short of their potential – both from unhealthy additives, but also, because the type of bacteria strains within the product may not.... [Read More...]
The post Making Your Foods Functional with Probiotics appeared first on Natren Probiotics Blog.
September 16, 2013
Let’s face it. Constipation is an annoyance and an inconvenience. In fact, constipation is the most common complaint related to the digestive tract – and one that becomes more common with age. A number of lifestyle habits contribute to the problem of constipation – eating a low-fiber diet, not drinking enough water, medications and lack of physical activity – but there’s growing evidence that gut bacteria play a role too. What evidence is there that gut bacteria are linked with constipation? Some research shows that people with chronic constipation have a different composition of bacteria in their gut than people.... [Read More...]
The post Do Probiotics Relieve Occasional Constipation? appeared first on Natren Probiotics Blog.
August 26, 2013
A significant percentage of the population experiences gastrointestinal symptoms that are severe enough to make their life unpleasant, symptoms like gas, bloating, diarrhea, constipation or abdominal cramping. Estimates are up to one out of five people are troubled by these symptoms. Some people experience them on a daily basis – at work, at home, at school, at social events and are inconvenienced and embarrassed by them. Many have sought medical attention and may have undergone a few x-rays or procedures to find out what’s wrong – and nothing was found. That’s the nature of functional bowel symptoms, you can’t always.... [Read More...]
The post Taking Control of Irritable Bowel Issues appeared first on Natren Probiotics Blog.
July 15, 2013
When babies come into the world, their intestinal tract is free of bacteria. It’s at the time of delivery that a baby’s gut is first colonized with bacteria from the mom. A number of factors influence the type of bacteria that make their home in a newborn baby’s intestinal tract. One such factor is type of delivery. During a natural delivery, a baby is in contact with intestinal and vaginal flora from their mother, making direct colonization easier. During cesarean deliveries, the first contact a baby has with bacteria is not from mom but from the outside environment. This can.... [Read More...]
The post Establishing the Digestive System – The Early Years appeared first on Natren Probiotics Blog.
May 13, 2013
In our blog last week, we discussed some pointers for keeping your digestive system in great shape. We highlighted a number of suggestions that, in effect, bring your diet and lifestyle closer to its “natural state” where we are living off the land, farming and catching our own food, physically working hard to survive, and generally returning our bodies to their evolutionary (or intelligently designed, depending on your beliefs) origins. The reality though, is that we are not cavemen. The stresses of today’s world make it very difficult to keep the balance of bacteria in your digestive tract. You can.... [Read More...]
The post Why Probiotics? appeared first on Natren Probiotics Blog.
May 06, 2013
Keeping the digestive system operating in peak condition is important for your overall health, but can sometimes be difficult to maintain with the busy lifestyles that we lead today. Sometimes it is necessary to go back to the basics, to remember how we should be living and try to modify our behaviors so that our bodies can work the way as they were designed. Here are a few tips to help keep your digestive system in peak condition. 1) Balanced Nutrition. It goes without saying that a balanced, natural diet is in tune with our body’s inner workings – after.... [Read More...]
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