probiotics vs. prebiotics

Prebiotics can be a way to selectively nourish probiotics.

Just like us, probiotics are living things that need food to survive and prosper and prebiotics can be one source of food.

Prebiotics are non-living oligosaccharides (complex carbohydrates) that cannot be digested by your body, but can be digested by selected bacteria in the gut, including probiotics. Prebiotics help feed and nourish these healthy bacteria allowing them to grow and multiply so you can continue to experience the health benefits of a balanced microbiome.

Think of it like this:

A car is a great resource that provides a lot of benefits like getting us to work, hauling our groceries home and reminding us the radio still exists. However, if you never fueled your car with gasoline, it wouldn’t last more than a week before it would be useless. In addition to a healthy diet, prebiotics can be the fuel that help nourish and promote healthy gut bacteria and provide your body with a multitude of benefits.

Prebiotics can vary in composition and be found naturally in a number of different foods:

• Bananas
• Asparagus
• Onions
• Garlic
• Carrots
• Okra
• Radishes
• Jerusalem Artichokes
• Apples (Skins)
• Tomatoes
• Turmeric
• Cinnamon
• Chicory Root
• Soybeans
• Barley
• Oatmeal
• Whole Wheat Foods

Since they cannot be digested by the body, prebiotics are ultimately useless in the absence of the bacteria in our gut, including probiotics. Any remaining prebiotics not digested by the healthy bacteria in your gut will act as a bulking agent in stool formation.

There you have it.

Prebiotics are the fuel that empower probiotics to support your digestive and immune health along with a plethora of other benefits.

 

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Article by UASLabs • October 3, 2018

UAS Labs has been manufacturing probiotics in the United States since 1979, making it one of the most trusted names in the probiotic industry today and a pioneer in probiotic manufacturing.