Probiotic Potential in the Brain!

Here at Probulin, we’re getting to be experts on all the research in the probiotics world. We’re always careful to tell you when the research is in initial stages, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t excited about all the potential!

Research published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that probiotic bacteria have the potential to alter the brain’s fatty acids composition. The research, being done in Ireland, was performed on mice and found that bacteria in the gut microbiota influence the brain.

Mice given particular probiotics had increased levels of ARA and DHA, two fatty acids that play important roles in the brain.

We’re not telling you this research will have an immediate impact on probiotic products. But it’s just another sign of how getting a deeper understanding of the bacteria in our bodies may really change the way we treat diseases and stay healthy.

 It’s exciting!

Go with your Gut,

The Probulin Team

Hammering Away at Your Health: Probiotics & Kidney Stones

Just saying the words “kidney stones” can make you grimace in pain if you know anything about them at all. About 1 in 20 Americans will get kidney stones at some point, with men more likely to get them than women. Some unlucky people get them repeatedly. . .

The most common type of kidney stones is composed of calcium oxalate, a chemical compound that forms needle-shaped crystals. Your gut bacteria – normally Oxalobacter formigenes, but also known as B. lactis, L. acidophilus and B. infantis – normally break down oxalate. But if you don’t have the bacteria in adequate amounts, then your gut absorbs the oxalate and the burden of excreting it falls on the kidneys. When your kidneys can’t get rid of oxalate fast enough, you may develop kidney stones.

A University of Boston study found that people who have a lot of Oxalobacter formigenes in their systems are 70 percent less likely to develop kidney stones. In animal studies, oral probiotics decreased both blood urea nitrogen and serum creatinine levels, both of which measure kidney function. Probiotiocs have been used for cats and dogs for a long time.

Early evidence also suggests that probiotics can postpone dialysis for people with kidney failure.. . . but that area needs more research.

I’d say it’s a good gamble to be taking your probiotics and decreasing the odds of getting kidney stones. I’ve never yet heard a good story about ’em and would just as soon reduces those stones to gravel. J

Go with your Gut,

The Probulin Team

Research into Bladder & Cervical Cancer

A cancer diagnosis can be a devastating shock, and it’s with relief that we watch daily as more research and treatments become available for different types of cancer. We’ve written in the past the impact probiotics may have on cancer and how much more research needs to be done in this area.

One clinical study found that patients with bladder cancer who took Lactobacillus casei had longer remission periods, in which the cancer didn’t reappear. A Japanese study also found that cancer patients who received probiotoics took longer to develop the cancer and the cancers weren’t as severe when they recurred in probiotic-treated patients.

Cervical cancer studies have found results along the same line. In one study, 228 women with advanced cervical cancer were given probiotics. The women who took probiotics had a higher four-year survival rate – 69 percent versus 46 percent for the women who didn’t take probiotics.

While these are initial studies and certainly aren’t definitive, there is promise in probiotics. . .

Go with your Gut,

The Probulin Team

 

PS – Click the Cervical Cancer ribbon to purchase your awareness magnet today!

Learning More: Research Needed into Human Microbiome

We’re learning about the bacterial world in and on our bodies, called the microbiome, and it’s clear to most medical researchers that it has a critical impact on our health.

Recently, researchers met in Paris for the International Human Microbiome Consortium, and talked about the importance of continuing research into the microbiome in our bodies. According to ScienceInsider, two major research programs in this area are coming to an end and it’s critical that funding be extended.

For such a relatively new field, the data gathering process has been important. But now it’s time to start challenging and interpreting the data. As we report here frequently, initial studies about the impact of probiotics are so promising, that more research needs to be done so we can fully understand the benefits.

Here’s to all the researchers, funders and others seeking to make our world better through understanding the bacteria we live with daily!

Read here (http://news.sciencemag.org/scienceinsider/2012/03/international-human-microbe-prog.html?ref=hp ) for more information on the international meeting.

Go with  your Gut,

The Probulin Team