There is a constantly growing number of probiotic supplements that are available on the market at the moment so choosing a really good on is becoming increasingly difficult. Keep in mind that you need to start everything with introducing probiotic foods like kefir, sauerkraut and yogurt to the daily diet. Only when you do not get all that you need from food supplementation should be utilized. When you choose, here is what you have to consider.
Packaging And Product Delivery Systems
The delivery system is what makes the probiotic supplement work. Delivery system is basically what form the product is created and how bacteria remains alive and then remain healthy when sitting on shelves. If the probiotic supplement includes too much dead bacteria or if the bacteria will die inside the stomach, you are simply wasting money.
The really good news is that technology advanced lot in the past few years and now you can easily gain access to something that is really effective. Just learn all that you can about the different delivery systems and make sure that packaging is proper. While in the past the athlete had to refrigerate the probiotic supplement, now packaging can guarantee that delivery is proper and bacteria stays alive for a really long time.
Probiotic Strains That Are Included
Most individuals think that it is really important for a supplement to include as much bacteria as possible but that is not actually the case. We still do not really know if there is a benefit in adding more. We are not aware of all the bacteria strains that are currently present inside our digestive tract. Due to that, do not believe the sales pitches that keep talking about quantity instead of quality.
Different bacteria strains have different functions. They will be concentrated in different digestive tract locations. The supplementation that comes with multiple strains will be much more effective when compared with a probiotic supplement that simply includes large concentrations of a couple of strains.
As a rule of thumb, consider probiotic supplements that include the following strains:
- L. Acidophilus – useful for colonizing small intestine walls.
- B. Longum – this is probably the most common digestive tract bacteria found in the human body.
- B. Bifidum – the strain is found inside the large and the small intestine. This strain is important as it will help you to break down the complex carbs, protein and fat so that the human body can use it in a more efficient way.
Expiration Date
Based on what is written above, expiration date is highly important when choosing probiotic supplements. Stated expiration date is vital since you want the bacteria to be potent and active. The simple fact that a company will pay a lot of attention to expiration date counts a lot. Only choose the probiotic supplementation that displays expiration date in a clear way. If there is no expiration date that is written, it is better to choose something else. You want to be sure that your chosen supplement will be really good 4 months from now.