Benefits of Probiotic Foods: Using good bacteria for better health

You’ve heard about the “bad” bacteria that can make you sick. But did you know there are also “good” bacteria that can actually improve your health? These beneficial bacteria are called probiotics, from the Latin and Greek words meaning “for life.” Thanks to Benefits of Probiotic Foods, a just-published guide from the experts at Harvard Medical School, you’ll discover how probiotics can improve your life.

In this information-packed guide, you’ll learn how probiotics can give your health a major boost. The latest research shows that probiotics may offer benefits against a range of health conditions, including allergies, arthritis, asthma, cancer, depression, heart disease, and gastrointestinal (GI) problems. Probiotics may even help with weight loss!  With this Harvard Medical School Guide, you’ll discover which probiotics are right for your health needs. Benefits of Probiotic Foods includes a helpful list of foods naturally loaded with probiotics, and easy recipes to boost your probiotic intake. 

Prepared by the editors of Harvard Health Publishing in consultation with Alessio Fasano, M.D., and W. Allan Walker Professor of Pdeiatrics, Harvard Medical School, Professor of Nutrition, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Chief, Division of Pediatric Gastroenerology and Nutrition, and Vice Chair of Research, Mass General for Children and Director, Mucosal Immunology and Biology Reserch Center, and Center for Celiac Research and Treatment. (2024)

About Harvard Medical School Guides

Harvard Medical School Guides delivers compact, practical information on important health concerns. These publications are smaller in scope than our Special Health Reports, but they are written in the same clear, easy-to-understand language, and they provide the authoritative health advice you expect from Harvard Health Publishing.

The probiotic and antibiotic connection

The relationship between antibiotics and gut microbiota is complex. Antibiot ics help fight infections and can control bacteria in your gut—both good and bad. However, taking high amounts of antibiotics over extended periods could disrupt your gastrointestinal ecosystem and deplete both good and harmful bacteria.

Then there is the question of whether you should take probiotics and antibiotics together. On the one hand, some research has found probiotics may help reduce the risk of developing common antibiotic side effects. For instance, a review of studies published in the November 2022 Journal of Medical Microbiology found that people who used probiotics in combination with antibiotics reported less diarrhea and other gastrointestinal symptoms.

But there is also evidence against taking them close together, as the combination can slow the gut’s recovery. For instance, a 2018 study in the journal Cell reported that the gut microbiome took longer to return to normal in people given an 11-strain probiotic treatment for four weeks after a course of antibiotics. The possible connection? Researchers suggested that even though the probiotics helped colonize the gut with new healthy bacteria, the addition delayed the recuperation time for bacteria that existed in the gut before antibiotic treatment

Still, some individuals may benefit from probiotics while taking antibiotics. For instance, the depletion of good bacteria from the use of antibiotics is a growing problem among older people, who are more susceptible to infections and may use antibiotics frequently. Some doctors try to compensate for this possible bacteria depletion by recommending that patients increase their intake of probiotic foods like yogurt or kefir when using certain types of antibiotics. Depending on the type of antibiotic, it may be best to take probiotics after the antibiotic treatment has ended rather than while you are taking it.

Since we do not have definitive evidence that probiotics can benefit people taking antibiotics, further research is needed in the area. For now, the best approach if you are prescribed antibiotics is to discuss with your doctor the role of probiotics, including possibly increasing the amount of probiotic foods you regularly eat and drink.

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