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Probiotics and prebiotics: What's the difference?
Probiotics and prebiotics are both beneficial to our bodies. But they don't just have a vowel of difference: both are beneficial to the health of our intestines, and not only that, despite being two completely different things. Find out the difference between probiotics and prebiotics!
Probiotics are beneficial bacteria, the so-called good bacteria, while prebiotics are the food these bacteria eat. Both prebiotics and probiotics are important for the health of our organism. However, they are completely different.
Probiotics are colonies of live bacteria that we bring into our bodies through nutrition. Typically, probiotics are found in some natural foods, fermented foods or supplements. They can provide numerous health benefits and are essential for the proper balance of intestinal bacterial flora.
Prebiotics are the substances that good bacteria eat. They are therefore essential to maintain the health of the microbiota, which is the set of good bacteria that colonize our intestines, and not only. Prebiotics are derived from types of carbohydrates, especially fibre, that we cannot digest.
Good bacteria in the digestive tract help protect the body from attack by harmful bacteria and fungi. According to recent findings, they also send signals to the immune system and help regulate inflammation.
In addition, some of the intestinal bacteria are involved in the formation of vitamin K and short-chain fatty acids, which protect the colon from attacks by viruses and "bad" bacteria.
Probiotics and prebiotics are introduced with the diet and serve to strengthen and balance the "good" bacteria to help them defend the body from disease.
Among the most famous probiotic foods that naturally contain live bacteria, there is yogurt (dairy and plant based), kefir, but also all fermented plant foods, such as kimchi, umeboshi, sauerkraut, Kombucha.
There are many foods that naturally contain prebiotics. As we have seen, in fact, prebiotics are types of fibres found in vegetables, fruits and legumes and are the main food of probiotic bacteria.
The foods that contain the most prebiotic fibres are:
Probiotic intestinal bacteria transform prebiotic fibres into a short-chain fatty acid called butyrate, which has anti-inflammatory effects within the colon.
Eating fibre-rich foods every day therefore feeds our "good" bacteria, which strengthen our immune system and protect us from disease. The best way to integrate prebiotics into your diet is to start with breakfast, with an oat porridge, perhaps mixed with some vegetable yoghurt rich in probiotics, half a banana, some fresh berries like blueberries and decorticated hemp seeds.
Hemp Fibre Powder is also a great source of prebiotics, just like Baobab, and you can add it to a smoothie, soup, creamy hummus or other sweet or savory recipes!
