Are probiotics good for the immune system?

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is crucial for maintaining your immune system. For instance: ³

• Eating foods like fresh vegetables, nuts, and seeds that promote the creation of white blood cells, which are vital for fighting infection.
• Steering clear of greasy and oily foods since they can prevent white blood cells from fighting illness. Additionally, a long-term high-fat diet can tip the gut flora balance that promotes immune function.
• Regular aerobic exercise appears to improve your body’s resistance to bacterial and viral illnesses. That’s partly because it improves blood circulation throughout your body.
• Refrain from consuming excessive amounts of alcohol because this might hinder your body’s ability to recover itself over time. Moreover, avoiding any kind of smoking.

More than half of the cells that create antibodies to fight sickness are found in the intestines and other gut-related organs. Therefore, if you have a healthy gut flora, which is the right mix of good bacteria and other creatures in your intestines, you may be less likely to become ill.⁴

Probiotics can assist in re-establishing the balance of the gut when it has fallen out of balance due to unhealthy numbers of some bacteria. It has been demonstrated that they release defense mechanisms, which could activate the immune system and stop bacteria from colonizing and causing serious illness.⁴

By ingesting a single probiotic, the frequency of coughing and fever can both be decreased, with the frequency reductions being 41% and 53%, respectively. Additionally, the occurrence rate drops after taking a variety of probiotics.⁵

Despite the preceding studies, probiotics have not yet been proven to be a reliable means of warding off diseases like the flu or the common cold. More research is needed to determine which specific bacteria may be beneficial, in what doses, and if they will work consistently for everyone. ⁴

In general, people start feeling significant benefits after 2 to 3 weeks of starting to take probiotics. And that is because probiotics need time to accomplish their three key goals: increase your good bacteria count, decrease your bad bacteria count, and reduce inflammation.⁶

But an important point should be noted, which is that each disease requires a different time for treatment using probiotics. For example, you will need around two days to get rid of diarrhea using probiotics as a curative method. On the other hand, taking a high dose over twelve weeks can lower the incidence of respiratory infection, especially the upper one. While for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) four weeks may be needed. ⁶

Before taking probiotics, you must be quite certain about the disease being treated, the precise strain that matches that symptom, in addition to the necessary effective amount, and the product’s quality.⁶

You should be aware that not every illness can be prevented from affecting your child. However, you may use these suggestions to lessen your risk of getting ill. as follows: ⁷

• If you have a newborn, you should think about breastfeeding for at least six months since there may be numerous benefits.
• Teach your child to properly wash their hands after using the toilet, coughing, sneezing, or any other contaminated surfaces. By doing this, you may reduce the risk of illnesses by up to 45%.
• Take into account your pediatrician’s advice on the recommended timetable for kid vaccines. Vaccinations can prevent diseases including measles, mumps, chickenpox, rotavirus, and others.
• Make sure your child gets sufficient sleep.
• Consider increasing your baby’s consumption of probiotics, vitamin D, zinc, nuts and seeds, fruits, and veggies.⁹ Giving your child ENTEROGERMINA^® as a probiotic will be quit easy as it does not have a bad taste or smell and available in bottles.⁸

Each pack of Enterogermina^® contains 10 mini bottles.

Common bacterial strains that are good for the immune system include the following: ¹²

• Acidophilus, which is found in yogurt, milk, miso, and tempeh.
• Bifidobacterium, which may be found in yogurt, kefir, buttermilk, miso, tempeh, pickles, kimchi, cured meats, sauerkraut, and sourdough bread.
• Lactobacillus delbrueckii, which is present in every yogurt that contains live and active probiotics.
• Bacillus Clausii, which is present in the supplement ENTEROGERMINA^®, has a shown impact on gut homeostasis and, consequently, immunity. ⁸

It is important to note that probiotic supplements have a greater impact on the body than do naturally occurring bacteria species. However, the health advantages of probiotics have not been demonstrated beyond a shadow of a doubt. Despite the great number of minor research that have been conducted, probiotics and their effects have not been investigated uniformly, making it difficult to compare the results of diverse investigations.¹³

Conclusion

Probiotics are typically safe to use, however, research from 2017 indicates that those with serious illnesses or weakened immune systems—including children and adults—should avoid taking probiotics. Probiotic use has resulted in bacterial or fungal infections in some patients with these disorders.

Before taking probiotics, a person with an immune system-altering illness should consult their doctor. ¹⁴