Prebiotics and Probioics: What’s the hype? Prebiotics & Probiotics: What’s the Hype?

By Summer McNeill | M.S. Nutrition

Gut health has been a hot topic on social media lately. With words like microbiome, gut flora, prebiotic, and probiotic being thrown around in wellness ads, tik toks, and placed on food and health products. With so much information out there, it can get confusing and overwhelming to understand what all these things mean.

The Gut Microbiome

The word “microbiome” refers to a community of microorganisms that can be found living together in a given habitat. The gut microbiome is a complex system of trillions of bacteria, fungi, viruses, and parasites living within the digestive tract; some good, some bad, some neutral. When people hear the word “gut,” they often think of the stomach, however, the term “gut microbiome” actually refers to the whole digestive tract, with the highest concentration on microbes found in the small and large intestines. The microbiome plays a number of roles in supporting the health of the host; microbiota stimulate the immune system, break down toxins, and synthesize certain vitamins and amino acids, such as vitamin K. Disruption of the gut microbiome has been linked to constipation, diarrhea, bloating, fatigue, acid reflux, diabetes, obesity, inflammatory bowel disease, and a number of other conditions. It is important to note that if you are currently experiencing any of these systems you should seek the guidance of a medical professional.

According to most current research, the gut microbiome is thought to begin developing at birth; the composition of the gut microbiome is influenced by a number of factors, including illness, antibiotics, medications, diet, environment, and even the way in which someone is born (cesarean vs vaginal). In the first few months of life the microbiome is generally low in microbial diversity, but tends to resemble that of an adult by 2.5 years.

So, What are Pre- and Probiotics?

Now that we have a basic understanding of the gut microbiome, let’s talk pre- and probiotics. Probiotics are live microorganisms which, when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit on the host. Prebiotics are non-digestible plant fibers, or carbohydrates, from food that the gut ferments to produce beneficial chemicals.

Basically, prebiotics are the food for probiotics and we need both of them to create a healthy gut microbiome.

Nourishing the Gut

The best way to support a healthy gut is to increase the variety of pre- and probiotic foods you are consuming. While there are many prebiotic and probiotic supplements available on the market, I always recommend taking a food first approach to diet; especially because it can be so easy to increase pre- and probiotics through food alone.

Prebiotics are found in a plethora of natural fiber containing foods. If you eat a balanced diet you are probably getting plenty of prebiotics already.

Eat more fruits and vegetables, beans, legumes, and whole grains to increase prebiotics; and don’t forget to include as much variety as you can. This will provide your good bacteria with plenty of food and energy to support a healthy microbiome.

Probiotics are found in fermented or cultured foods. Different types of fermented foods will provide you with different types of bacteria. Naturally containing probiotic foods include, yogurt (with live and active cultures), kefir, sauerkraut, kimchi, pickles, miso, tamari, tempeh, kombucha, aged cheese (with live and active cultures), and buttermilk.

If you are not used to eating probiotic foods, start slowly and then gradually increase your consumption. Try to pair pre and probiotic foods together in the same meal so they can work together during digestion.

Conclusion

Prebiotics and probiotics are essential components of a healthy gut microbiome and overall health and wellness. Supporting your gut microbiome can be easily achieved by increasing your intake of the pre- and probiotic foods mentioned above.

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