Although prebiotics and probiotics have very similar names and both play an important role in digestive health, they are not the same thing. The specialists explain what they are for and how they differ.
Prebiotics and probiotics benefits
Prebiotics and probiotics. Endocrinologist María D. Ballesteros Pomar explained that our microbiota has a triple function: protective, trophic and metabolic.
“It exerts a protective barrier effect against other microorganisms. Through its trophic function, it controls the proliferation and differentiation of the gut epithelial cells and contributes to the development and homeostasis of the immune system,” Ballesteros said.
Homeostasis is a mechanism that keeps the internal conditions of an organism or system stable, despite the changes that may occur in the environment.
“More recently, the metabolic function of the microbiota has been discovered, which includes the fermentation of non-digestible residue from diet and endogenous (internal) mucus,” Dr. Ballesteros said.
Ballesteros clarified that these microorganisms include more than 100 different species of viruses, bacteria and eukaryotes – organisms formed by cells with true nucleus – in a number that would be equivalent to about 10 times that of the cells that make up an adult.
She also said that two healthy people can have very different microbiota as each individual harbors his or her own distinctive pattern of bacterial composition.
“In addition to genetic predisposition, there are other factors that have a decisive influence on the composition of our microbiota, such as dietary patterns, the use of antibiotics, lifestyle or hygiene habits,” she said.
To protect our microbiota it is essential to have a healthy and balanced diet with regular consumption of fruits and vegetables.
Endocrinologist María D. Ballesteros said that changes in the microbiota have been associated with many diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease, irritable bowel, non-alcoholic liver steatosis (fatty liver), colorectal cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma (liver cancer) and gastric cancer.
Prebiotics, discovering what they are
Some plant-based foods such as garlic, onion, chicory, bananas or asparagus, are rich in prebiotics.
But what are prebiotics? The International Scientific Association of Probiotics and Prebiotics explains that they are substrates that the microorganisms that live inside us selectively use, which provides a health benefit.
“Often, prebiotics are types of fiber that the human body cannot digest and that serve as food for the beneficial microorganisms that inhabit the colon,” according to this association.
In this sense, Dr. Ballesteros clarified that the definition of prebiotics “overlaps partially with the concept of dietary fiber, although she added the selectivity of prebiotics, which potentiate certain particular microorganisms.”
To clarify this, she added: “In general, fiber favors the health of our gut flora. But each specific type of prebiotic, which often coincides with different types of fiber, would act on a specific type of gut microorganism.”
Probiotics, living microorganisms
Probiotics, on the other hand, are something very different, since they are actually living microorganisms.
In fact, they are living microorganisms that, when administered in an adequate amount, have a beneficial effect on health.
Thus, the International Scientific Association of Probiotics and Prebiotics notes that some of the benefits of probiotics can be attributed to their positive effect to achieve a healthy intestinal microbiota.
However, it recognizes that with the current scientific knowledge we cannot be sure what the most favorable composition of the microbioma is for our health.
Probiotics are contained in fermented foods such as yogurt, kefir or sauerkraut, but they are also available in tablets, capsules and other pharmaceutical preparations.
Dr. Ballesteros stressed that, since the scientific knowledge about their benefits is still very limited, we should not intake them without control.
“Let’s remember that probiotics are living microorganisms, so they can also entail risks for people with immune system problems. In diseases in which there is evidence of their effectiveness, it should be a doctor who recommends what type of probiotic and at what dose should be taken for each clinical situation and each person,” she said.
Ballesteros stated there are studies that demonstrate a possible beneficial effect of prebiotics and probiotics “in the treatment and/or prevention of diarrhea (acute, due to antibiotics, radiotherapy, etc.), in inflammatory bowel disease, in colon health (constipation, irritable bowel), in liver disease, in intensive care patients, in surgical patients undergoing liver transplantation.”
Finally, Ballesteros explained that there are other products called symbiotics, which contain both probiotics and prebiotics.
Date: October 10th, 2019
By: Elena Reinés
Link: https://www.efesalud.com/prebioticos-prebioticos
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