2023-06-21 09:18:35
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Probiotics have been added to dairy drinks such as Yakult, Vifit and Actimel. Can these live bacteria boost your health? Or are your intestines just as happy with fermented food, such as sauerkraut, kimchi and kefir? With microbiologist Remco Kort we dive into the world of the abdomen and look for answers.
What does microbiologist Kort think about fermented food and probiotic drinks with lactic acid bacteria? Can these positively influence our immune system? Based on six propositions, we look for the facts and fables about intestinal flora, bacteria and our health.
– Healthy intestinal flora is important for your health – Fact
“Yes, it is difficult not to agree with this”, is Remco Korts response to the first statement. All kinds of factors have an effect on the composition of your intestinal flora. These are all microorganisms in your intestines, from fungi to bacteria. “What you eat is the most important. But it goes further than that. Sleep and exercise also have an influence.”
“Everyone has their own unique gut flora, or as scientists say: gut microbiota. The more diverse the microbiota in your gut is, the healthier it is.” Nutrition plays a key role in this, explains Kort. “Fibers are extremely important for healthy intestinal flora, research shows time and time again. A fiber-rich diet, which also consists of different types of fiber, leads to a healthy intestinal microbiota.”
What should you eat for such a healthy, high-fiber diet? “Then you have to think of vegetables, tubers, grains, nuts and fruit.”
– In a healthy intestinal flora, the beneficial and harmful bacteria are in balance – Fact
“Yes, I think this is well formulated,” explains Kort. How can such an imbalance arise between the bacteria in your stomach? “For example, if you take a course of antibiotics against an infection, you unintentionally also attack the intestinal bacteria. With long-term use of broad-spectrum antibiotics, certain bacteria can become predominant.” This disrupts the healthy balance, explains Kort. “You can then contract a very serious intestinal infection, because bacteria that have not been dealt with will take over.”
– Many diseases are influenced by the composition of the intestinal flora – Fable and fact
“As a general statement, this goes a bit too far,” says microbiologist Kort. “But you can say that gut bacteria are important for a well-functioning immune system.”
“Your intestinal flora produces all kinds of compounds that are absorbed by your body. From the intestines, they reach your other organs via the blood. Therefore, it makes sense that gut microbiota have a great effect on diseases. At the same time, much research is still needed. A human being is a walking bioreactor. There is no limit to what you can still research about it.”
– Probiotic drinks with lactic acid bacteria can positively influence your immune system – No fact or fable
Probiotics are intended to positively influence your intestinal flora and thus your health. They are living microorganisms, including yeasts and bacteria. The dairy drinks contain lactic acid bacteria from, for example, the bacterial genus Lactobacillus of Bifidobacterium.
Can columnar products such as Yakult, Vifit, Activia and Actimel really positively influence your immune system, as the makers claim? Microbiologist Kort does not want to say a firm ‘yes’ to this. “You really have to look at this specifically per probiotic and per health situation that you want to improve. Not all probiotics are the same. Some help. It’s hard to lump them together.”
He has done his own research into the effect of probiotics. “It revolved around diarrhea that was the result of receiving an antibiotic. Then things are out of balance in the body. After administering some probiotics, we indeed saw an accelerated recovery. So there was good evidence of effectiveness.”
In addition to the probiotics in dairy drinks, they are also available in the form of dried supplements. “They all have different compositions and use different strains of probiotics.”
“Are you healthy? Then probiotic drinks don’t add to that.”
In any case, people who are fine do not need to use probiotic or dairy drinks, as far as Kort is concerned: “Suppose you are healthy. Then you won’t find a study that shows that probiotics go a step further. In that respect, the skepticism about the use of probiotic drinks for healthy people is justified.”
– Chronic intestinal diseases such as Crohn’s and colitis benefit from probiotics – Fact and fable
What about probiotics for people who are ill and, for example, have a chronic intestinal disease such as Crohn’s or ulcerative colitis? Are the use of probiotics advisable for them? “It is not wise to talk about probiotics in general terms,” warns the professor. “Then you want to know: which strains of bacteria were used for the probiotics? What dosage was used?”
Only when you look at it so specifically do you see that in some cases an effect has been measured during scientific studies, says Kort. He formulates it carefully on purpose. “In some cases, an effect has been shown that probiotics work in intestinal diseases. The positive effects seem to be somewhat stronger for colitis than for Crohn’s.”
“Which probiotic works for you?”
“Because the individual effect can be different in people, it can pay to go ‘shopping’, says the microbiologist. “Which probiotic works for you?” Isn’t it dangerous for people to just start a dairy drink or dried supplement with probiotics? “No, as long as you just eat it and don’t inject it through the bloodstream. I have never heard of the adverse effects of taking probiotics. Only for people who do not have a properly functioning immune system, it may in some cases be unwise to use probiotics.”
– Fermented foods are good for you – Fact
Together with the Maag Lever Darm Stichting, Kort is currently researching how people can be encouraged to make healthier choices in their diet. “The focus is on dietary fiber and fermented foods.”
In a story about bacteria, intestinal flora and health, fermented food should therefore not be missing, says Kort. “You should definitely mention that too, if you’re talking about positive effects on the immune system. The necessary studies have been done on this. There are indications that fermented foods have these effects.” Food can be fermented by adding bacteria, yeasts or fungi. This allows you to let vegetables or, for example, fruit or meat rot in a controlled manner, as it were. In earlier times this was done to preserve food longer, but it can also improve the taste. “Fermented food is rich in microorganisms. Examples are sauerkraut, kimchi and kefir. But there is much more. Vinegar and yoghurt are also fermented products. The Japanese natto contained fermented soybeans. It’s a world in itself.”
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