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Probing About Probiotics
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Understanding the hype, hope, and facts about “friendly bacteria”
By Anne Ptasznik
Probiotics, sometimes referred to as ‘friendly bacteria’, have entered the nutritional spotlight. They occur naturally in our gastrointestinal (GI) tract by the billions to mind our health, but now we can top up our reserves thanks to a growing number of food products that contain probiotics. But how good are they for us really? We checked in with health and nutrition experts for answers to some questions still bugging consumers about probiotics.
Q. What are the proven health benefits of probiotics?
A. “While there are many health benefit claims, the ones with the most scientific back-up are improved recovery time for children’s viral diarrhea, improved regularity, and strengthened immunity, including reduced inflammation for people with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD),” says Dr. Gregor Reid, director of the Canadian Research and Development Centre for Probiotics, London, Ontario. Some Lactobacilli strains have been shown to cure vaginal infections when given vaginally, or to improve treatment when given orally with antibiotics or antifungals. Also, Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG and Saccharomyces boulardii have been shown to help reduce the risk of Clostridium difficile (C. difficile), “but no probiotic cures it”, says Reid.
Q. How much yogurt, cheese or other foods would you have to eat to reap health benefits?
A. It depends on the concentration in the product and the strain, says Isabelle Marquis, a registered dietitian with Enzyme, a Montreal-based marketing agency specializing in food, health and wellness. Probiotics are featured in a number of yogurts (e.g. Danone Activia), fermented dairy drinks, and baby foods, and have been showing up in juices (e.g. Oasis Health Break) and cheese too – Kraft LiveActive cheddar is the first and only probiotic cheese available in Canada. But you need to know what and how much you’re getting to be sure of any health benefits, cautions Marquis. She recommends verifying the concentration of each product. “An element that can and should be verified by consumers though, besides the concentration, is the identification of the strain: if the strain(s) isn’t identified on the label, it most probably means it was not identified by the company, so you should not expect to obtain significant health benefits from that product”, adds Marquis.
Q. What amount should I be looking for in my food or supplement?
A. One billion, live bacteria is the recommended minimum. “It doesn’t mean that because you take 10 billion instead of one billion that the product will act ten times faster or that for sure you’ll have a bigger effect. It depends on the strain,” says Marquis. The key thing is verifying that you’re getting as much ‘active, live bacterial cultures’ as a product promises on its label. Also, the bacteria needs to stay alive, not just while it’s on the shelf but throughout the whole digestive process – meaning that it has to make it past your stomach’s acidic environment to your small and large intestine. Not all bacteria present in probiotic products or supplements survive during the digestion process. “If a company makes the statement that it does survive, on its product and/or in their communication, it’s a good sign, since Health Canada doesn’t allow them to say that if they can’t prove it”, says Marquis.
Q: Is there any guarantee that I’m getting the amount that’s on a product label?
“The strain number must be indicated on the label. If not, you must contact the manufacturer. Generally, if a strain number is specified, you can be confident it is there”, says Dr. Claude Champagne, a research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. He explains that, at least in Canada, manufacturers “actually add more bacteria than is claimed so that they are sure that the numbers are there at the ‘best before date’.”
Q. How do I know if the bacteria are alive and active?
A. Purchase products from a reliable company, as you need a laboratory to check. Dr. Champagne says that his experience with dairy foods, and recently fruit juices, is that the claims on numbers are founded. However, for pills and caplets, while he has high confidence in claims if the products have been made in Canada, there are reports of problems at the end of the “best before” date. He recommends refrigeration, even with dried products. “If there are problems, it generally is linked to the re-packaging and storage conditions,” he says. Probiotics shouldn’t be exposed to heat or light.
Q. Is there anyone who shouldn’t take probiotics?
A. While probiotics are considered safe for generally healthy people, Reid says that if a patient has a leaky gut (increased permeability of the intestine) caution should be used. Talk to your doctor if you have any health concerns.
Q. What dose of advice should we take with our probiotics?
A. “We need to be informed a little bit more, have a closer look at the packaging and do a bit of homework to make sure that the products we want to buy are really reliable, but there are very interesting benefits we can get from probiotics at all ages,” says Marquis.
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