Study Finds Probiotics 'Not As Beneficial For Gut Health As Previously Thought' (theguardian.com)

An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Guardian: The gut microbiome is the sum total of all the micro-organisms living in a person's gut, and has been shown to play a huge role in human health. New research has found probiotics -- usually taken as supplements or in foods such as yoghurt, kimchi or kefir -- can hinder a patient's gut microbiome from returning to normal after a course of antibiotics, and that different people respond to probiotics in dramatically different ways. In the first of two papers published in the journal Cell, researchers performed endoscopies and colonoscopies to sample and study the gut microbiomes of people who took antibiotics before and after probiotic consumption. Another group were given samples of their own gut microbiomes collected before consuming antibiotics. The researchers found the microbiomes of those who had taken the probiotics had suffered a "very severe disturbance." "Once the probiotics had colonized the gut, they completely inhibited the return of the indigenous microbiome which was disrupted during antibiotic treatment," said Eran Elinav, an immunologist at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel and lead author on the studies.

The scientists also compared the gut microbiomes of the gut intestinal tract of 25 volunteers with that of their stools. They found that stool bacteria only partially correlated with the microbiomes functioning inside their bodies. "So the fact that we all almost exclusively rely on stool in our microbiome research may not be a reliable way of studying gut microbiome health," said Elinav. In the second paper, the researchers examined the colonization and impact of probiotics on 15 people by sampling within their gastrointestinal tract. They divided the individuals into two groups: one were given a preparation made of 11 strains of very commonly used probiotics and the other were given a placebo. Of those who were given probiotics, he said, "We could group the individuals into two distinct groups: one which resisted the colonisation of the probiotics, and one in which the probiotics colonized the gut and modified the composition of the gut microbiome and the genes of the host individual."

Comments

Don't take probiotic pills

[PopeRatzo]

Don't waste your money on probiotic capsules. If you want to try to increase the amount or variety of bacteria in your guts, there are tons of delicious foods that are chock full of probiotics. Olives, pickles, fermented meats like the Italian delicacy soprasetta (which might be the tastiest thing ever invented by humans). Kimchi is also good, but it will make you smell bad, so if you're single, you might want to go easy on the kimchi.

Also, if you use vinegar on salads, try getting some of that good cider vinegar that still has the "mother" in it. Shake the bottle and use like any other vinegar. And of course, yogurt, kefir, that kind of stuff is delicious too.

I'm not crazy about kombucha. It's a big fad now and there are places here in California that have kombucha on tap, but it's not really to my taste. Some people swear by it. I notice that now when you buy it in the store, they ask for an ID since there's a small amount of alcohol in it.

Also, alcohol is not really good for your gut bacteria, but there are more important things in life than gut bacteria, you know? Just eat a lot of different kinds of food and you'll end up with good gut bacteria without even trying.

Re: Don't take probiotic pills

[ljw1004]

Why would you advise people on natural sources of probiotics - in response to an article which said that they're either ineffectual or actually bad?

Re:Don't take probiotic pills

[PopeRatzo]

This is just crazy. You don't know what kind of bacteria is in this food. And most bacteria in our food are killed by the acids in our stomach.

You're absolutely right. So the worst thing that can happen from ingesting this food is that you've just eaten something delicious that people have been eating for centuries. I'm not sure I get what part of it that is "crazy".

I don't know if probiotics are good or bogus or simply neutral. But I knew that fermented food is good food. I buy this habanero hot sauce that is fermented in barrels and it will make you weep and praise the lord. Get you some of that whole milk yogurt and put a big spoon on some blueberries and a drop of honey, it's like dipping your snout in Aphrodite's lady parts.

Don't pay attention to the labels. Eat what you like and don't overdo it and you'll live a nice long life and you won't need all those antibiotics because you'll be healthy.