Getting Your Probiotic Fix When Taking Antibiotics
If your doctor prescribed you an antibiotic, you may have read the research showing how it can destroy healthy bacteria. Antibiotics aren't selective in what they target, and they may get rid of beneficial bacteria that affect cognition, immune health, and overall health. This is why it's highly important to replenish your body with probiotics of some kind to bring strength back to the body. We'll explain what you can do and what to look for in probiotics within this informative guide.
Why Take a Probiotic?
Antibiotics are a great way to kill off potentially harmful bacteria, but it's not selective at all. These antimicrobial drugs don't know the difference between heathy and dangerous bacteria, so it ends up targeting even essential bacteria.This can have a major impact on health, which is why many who take antibiotics will suddenly develop symptoms including depression, loss of motivation, fatigue, and even the possibility for obesity. There's some evidence showing that early exposure to antibiotics may lead to increased weight gain later in life. New studies are highlighting the importance of healthy gut bacteria for men and women of all ages.
A probiotic is a great way to replenish the lost healthy bacteria, which can aid the immune system to keep you healthy. A US based group called the US interagency Task Force on Antimicrobial Resistance was also created to combat the overuse of antibiotics, straining the importance of only using them when absolutely necessary.
Important Considerations
If you're taking an antibiotic it's not uncommon to see symptoms related to improper digestion such as diarrhea, cramping, and gas. This is often why people seek to find a solution, which can come from probiotics. When you take a probiotic you should consider the following:- Source: You can get probiotics in supplements, yogurt, or other beverages like kefir. If you decide to use a food it's important to make sure the sugar content is low, since overuse of sugar can also be damaging to gut bacteria. In supplement form it's important to do research to verify you're getting the right bacteria strains at an affordable cost. With various kinds of brands to choose from there's a lot of variety, so it's important to stay informed.
- During or before antibiotics: If you decide to increase your probiotic intake while using an antibiotic, you may want to consider a brand with multiple stains of bacteria. This is to cover all the potentially lost bacteria that antibiotics may kill. It's also recommended to time supplementation about 2 hours or so after antibiotics are used, in order to increase the amount of bacteria the body absorbs. If taken at nearly the same time it may end up destroying the probiotics before they can deliver.
- Ask your Doctor if it's truly necessary: Since antibiotics tend to be overprescribed, it's important to ask whoever is prescribing it to you if it's absolutely needed. Sometimes it's given as a pre-caution though it's not always necessary. Antibiotic resistance is a real and potentially dangerous thing which can raise the risk of having even stronger pathogens which may make you sicker in the future.
- Allergies: If you decide to use a common dairy source of probiotics such as kefir or your, make sure that it offers something that sits well with your stomach. There's no need to take a lactose heavy yogurt for example if you're lactose intolerant. For some a probiotic rich supplement may be a better approach if there are any sensitivities or dietary restrictions.
- Quality: Whatever brands you pick make sure it's been well-reviewed and not just bacteria strain heavy. Some brands offer more bacteria than others, but if it's not well absorbed or lacking in the final product, you might be better off with a brand that has less but which is better reviewed.