A healthy gut is essential for physical and mental wellness. It influences digestion, nutrient absorption, immune function and so much more. Many factors contribute to gut health, including diet, sleep habits, stress management, physical activity and other lifestyle factors, but diet is perhaps the most significant of these. Nourishing your body with a wholesome, balanced diet that’s rich in fiber, antioxidant-filled fruits and vegetables, lean proteins and healthy fats is essential for gut and head-to-toe good health. Supplementing your diet with probiotics is a great way to level up support for a balanced gut microbiome, a healthy gut and overall wellbeing.*
Are probiotics good for gut health?
Probiotics are live, beneficial bacteria that can provide many health benefits, including gut health support. Supplementing with probiotics for digestive health helps replenish and maintain diverse gut microbiota and works to restore microbial balance that can be disrupted by many common factors, including a less than ideal diet, stress, illness and use of certain medicines. Gut health probiotics do their good work by promoting a healthy balance of bacteria in your gut microbiome.*
What is the best probiotic for gut health?
Many probiotic strains have been shown in clinical research to support good gut health. But by far the most studied gut health probiotic strain is Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG. This strain has been shown to have a strong ability to adhere to cells in the gut lining, which allows it to colonize and successfully crowd out harmful bacteria that are competing for space there. Because of its robust nature and benefits backed by research, Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG could be considered the best probiotic strain for gut health. But top-quality probiotic formulas should give you a combination of diverse strains to support your body’s microbiomes in different ways.*
What is the gut microbiome?
The gut microbiome refers to a complex community of microorganisms, including bacteria, fungi and other microbes that inhabit the gastrointestinal tract. Its incredibly diverse makeup, yet overall balance, is what makes your gut microbiome resilient and functionally stable. And a balanced gut microbiome does amazing things for your health. It promotes peak digestion. It supports gut barrier integrity, shielding the bloodstream from unwanted substances while allowing the absorption of essential nutrients and water. It even produces its own bioactive compounds, including vitamins, neurotransmitters and other signaling compounds that play a role in metabolism, mood and communication between the gut and other organs in your body.*
Do probiotics support gut health?
Yes! Years of extensive scientific research have found that probiotics are essential for maintaining a healthy gut. Hundreds of different strains have been identified, but those belonging to the Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium genera are among the most well-studied for gut health. Each strain has distinctive properties and potential benefits, and every person is unique, so choosing the right strain or combination of strains will influence how they’ll support your gut health. Other factors, such as CFU (colony forming unit) count, formulation quality and delivery method, also impact the effectiveness of a probiotic formula. Our Renew Life probiotic supplements come in a variety of CFU counts to fit different customer needs—from our Everyday Probiotics Collection to our Extra Care Probiotics Collection and more. And all our formulas come in delayed-release capsules that ensure the probiotics inside get to your gut alive to deliver the gut health support you need.*
How do probiotics support the gut?
Probiotics play a critical role in supporting gut health by promoting a balanced gut microbiota, enhancing digestive function, building gut barrier integrity and encouraging proper nutrient absorption. All of these benefits are important for a healthy, happy, well-functioning gut. Incorporating probiotic-rich foods into your diet and supplementing with a quality probiotic formula, like any of our Renew Life probiotics for gut, will help support a balanced gut microbiome, which is a cornerstone for gut health.*
Can you change your gut microbiome?
It is possible to positively influence your gut microbiome in various ways, including eating a balanced diet, making good lifestyle choices, supplementing with probiotics and also prebiotics that feed and nurture those probiotics. While you can’t completely change your gut microbiome overnight, making consistent modifications over time can lead to significant improvements in microbiome diversity.
What do bacteria do in a healthy gut microbiome?
In a healthy gut microbiome, bacteria perform a wide range of essential functions. The best known of these is maintaining balance in the microbiome by colonizing in the gut and preventing the overgrowth of unhealthy microorganisms. While this is an impressive task on its own, gut bacteria do much more. They aid in the breakdown and metabolism of complex carbohydrates, fiber, proteins and fats into molecules that can be absorbed and utilized by the body. They help produce short-chain fatty acids that play a role in gut motility and immune system function. And some gut bacteria even help synthesize important vitamins, including vitamin K, biotin and folate.
How do probiotics work in the gut?
Probiotics work in many ways to support gut health and overall wellness, but their main function is to promote a healthy gut microbiome. When you introduce healthy probiotic bacteria into your body through diet or supplements, they can take root in your gut and colonize there. By competing with harmful bacteria for resources and space, probiotics help promote microbial diversity and balance.*
Can probiotics restore gut flora?
Probiotics can play a valuable role in restoring gut flora by introducing beneficial bacteria into the gut, crowding out harmful bacteria, enhancing gut barrier integrity, supporting healthy immune function and producing metabolites that promote gut health. Helping to create a healthy, balanced gut microbiome doesn’t happen instantly, though. A consistent, daily approach of eating a wholesome diet rich in prebiotic and probiotic foods as well as supplementing with a quality probiotic formula that contains a diverse combination of research-backed strains is the best way to restore and maintain healthy gut flora.*
How should I take probiotics for gut health?
There are several things to consider when taking gut health probiotics. First, choose a formula that contains multiple, diverse strains that are backed by research and shown to support digestive health. Next, look at CFU (colony forming unit) count, which is a measure of the live, active probiotics in each dose and an indicator of potency. A good CFU range is 15–150 billion. Try starting on the lower end to see what’s effective for you and then move to a higher CFU count if needed. Also, make sure the probiotics are contained in capsules that can protect the live bacteria as they travel through harsh digestive system acids and arrive alive to your gut, where they can colonize and do their good work. All Renew Life probiotics use delayed-release capsule technology and have guaranteed potency through labeled expiration date, not manufacturing date, like some formulas you’ll find. A final consideration is consistency. It’s important to take your probiotics daily to maintain a healthy balance of bacteria in your gut and to experience the many gut health benefits that this balance provides.*
What are the best prebiotics and probiotics for gut health?
The best prebiotics and probiotics for gut health can vary, depending on individual needs, preferences and health conditions. But, to get the best benefits from your probiotics, make sure you are feeding them with some amount of prebiotics to help support the growth of the beneficial bacteria in your gut. You can get prebiotics from your diet and from supplements. Good sources of dietary prebiotic fiber are legumes, certain fruits and veggies like bananas, asparagus and artichokes, as well as chicory root, onions and garlic. In supplements, popular prebiotic sources include inulin, fructooligosaccharides (FOS), galactooligosaccharides (GOS) and xylooligosaccharides (XOS). The most well-researched probiotic strains for gut health are those in the Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium species. Make sure the probiotic formula you choose has multiple, diverse strains, as they can work in different ways to support a balanced gut microbiome.*
Are probiotics good for digestion?
Yes! Of the many wellness benefits probiotics can provide, healthy digestion is at the top of the list. Probiotics work by promoting a healthy gut microbiome and supporting various aspects of digestive function. A balanced gut microbiome supports peak digestion, nutrient absorption and immune function. This balance also helps keep unwanted digestive issues, like occasional gas and bloating, at bay. When you replenish your good bacteria each day by eating a wholesome, balanced diet and supplementing with a quality probiotic formula, you are setting the stage for your best possible digestive health and overall vitality.*
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