In this Issue:
Greetings,
Bacteria Support Immune Function,
Digestion, & More
Bacteria get a bad rap. Most folks associate bacteria with infection, food
poisoning, ulcers, and even death.
However, it’s a little-known fact that, because bacteria cells are smaller
than human cells, there are ten bacteria cells for every one human cell in your
body. Now, isn’t that rich!
And, between 5,000 and 10,000 different species of bacteria live in the human
body, with a majority taking up residence in the intestinal tract.
Most of those tiny “bugs” perform essential functions and live symbiotically
inside your body to support healthy digestion and immune system function.
More specifically, friendly bacteria like lactobacillus and
bifidobacterium, which are concentrated in the gut, help synthesize vitamins
and other nutrients and support digestive enzyme secretion.
When inadequate numbers of these friendly bacteria are present, bad bacteria
can take over and cause infection.
Unfortunately, good-to-bad bacteria ratios are constantly being threatened,
which gives harmful bacteria more chances to cause mischief.
Most imbalances result from dietary changes, travel, stress, illness, aging,
and the use of some medications (mostly antibiotics, which don’t discriminate
between friendly and harmful bacteria when doing their jobs).
And, alas, Americans are breaking records for using antacids, laxatives, and
other gut-soothing remedies, which never address the root cause of an unhappy GI
tract. To make matters worse, these products further deplete healthy bacteria
supplies and it becomes a vicious cycle of discomfort and temporary relief.
Keeping the Balance: Probiotics to the Rescue
Growing numbers of people seeking help in
probiotics -- live, friendly bacteria that support healthy digestive and
immune system function.
Most probiotics contain some combination of lactobacillus and
bifidobacterium, the former needed by the small intestine and the latter
required by the large intestine.
Together, lactobacillus and bifidobacterium improve lactose
digestion and immune function while also helping reduce cholesterol, yeast
infections, and the incidence of colon cancer. Pretty impressive work for such
tiny bugs!
Fast Fact: After age 50, most folks need to supplement with
bifidobacterium because natural gut supplies start to decline at this age.
Prebiotics: Feeding Your Friendly Bacteria
Most folks are familiar with the term “probiotics,” with “prebiotics” being
less familiar.
Prebiotics nourish the friendly probiotic bacteria and also decrease
pathogenic bacteria, so this is yet another reason to boost your fiber intake.
According to the Physician’s Desk Reference guide:
“Prebiotics
are defined as nondigestible food ingredients that may beneficially
affect the host by selectively stimulating the growth and/or the activity of
a limited number of bacteria in the colon. Thus, to be effective, prebiotics
must escape digestion in the upper gastrointestinal tract and be used by a
limited number of the microorganisms comprising the colonic microflora.
Prebiotics are principally
oligosaccharides. They mainly stimulate the growth of
bifidobacteria, for which reason they are referred to as bifidogenic
factors.”
Here are a few more ideas on “Tipping the Bacteria Scales in Your Favor”:
• Watch your diet. Be sure to
increase your intake of probiotic-rich foods like yogurt and prebiotic-rich
foods -- like fruits, veggies, and whole grains. Carefully prepare
foods that may harbor harmful bacteria (like
salmonella, e-coli, etc.) and
reduce intake of simple sugars and caffeine, which fuel pathogenic
microorganisms such as bacteria, yeast, and fungal organisms.
• Take care when your system is stressed. Regardless of cause --
illness, travel, or anxiety --
stress hurts friendly bacteria populations. Try to keep the stress
to a minimum and be sure to
supplement with probiotics when you’re under stress.
• Help probiotics make it safely to your gut. Probiotics are
particularly susceptible to stomach acid assault, and that’s one reason
dairy products are the most common food carrier of probiotics (milk buffers
stomach acids). If you’re taking supplemental probiotics, be sure to follow
the directions so that live flora make it safely to your intestines with
minimal acid-damage.
For more on our popular
Probiotics 16
product.
Important Note: If you're wondering how our Probiotics 16 do
with stomach acid, you should know we use only superior strains of friendly
bacteria that have been naturally selected to be resistant to the acid and bile
of the stomach.
The strains themselves are not damaged by bile and acid. We do not use
enteric coating because it is applied at high heat and may damage live cells.
Health in the News
Co-op Earns HACKER SAFE Secure Site
Status
You can rest assured that our site and your shopping are secure at the Co-op!
To ensure online shopping security, we employ ScanAlert –a company that
monitors web sites for security using their HACKER SAFE technology and through
daily audits.
The HACKER SAFE symbol can only appear on web sites that meet stringent
standards for security of confidential information.
If you haven’t noticed our green HACKER SAFE symbol (in the
upper left-hand corner of our
site and accompanied by the latest security test date), then please take note.
If any of our readers know somebody who is shy about sharing credit card
information over the Internet, then please let them know about our daily
security audits!
And, tell ‘em this kat would most certainly welcome their business! ^..^
FDA "Guidelines" - Concerns Addressed
We’ve been receiving and answering scads of emails about the Food and Drug
Administration's (FDA) proposed guidelines to mandate alternative services.
Here is an example of the emails we’ve been receiving:
“The FDA has proposed a new ‘guidance’ document to classify every alternative
practice as medicine. The document will mandate that only licensed physicians
can carry out procedures AND that vitamins, minerals, herbs, etc., will suddenly
become ‘untested drugs’ which will be forbidden.”
With all the commotion about the FDA’s guidelines, we decided to share what
we know based on conversations with industry experts who are also ardent
champions of the current DSHEA laws (Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act
of 1994).
1. The FDA is simply recanting the laws already in place and stating how
various CAM modalities fall within those laws. They are not proposing new
laws.
2. The FDA guidelines do not threaten any licensed practitioners as long
as they abide by the laws of their profession.
The point of the guidance is not to enforce rules or “crack down” on the
industry but to familiarize the public with the existing authority the FDA has
to regulate a variety of products used by Complimentary and Alternative Medicine
(CAM) practitioners.
Still purringly yours,
Guido
Guido Housemouser
Chief Kat and Community Manager
Our Health Co-op
4188 Westroads Drive,
Unit 123
Riviera Beach, FL 33407
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