5 best probiotic supplements for women

The digestive tract contains billions of bacteria that help break down food and absorb nutrients, and recent evidence suggests that a healthy population of bacteria can also help manage inflammation, improve immunity, and regulate inflammation. stress. Some research has shown that probiotics can improve the health of the skin and vagina, two reasons that have led many women to question whether there is the best supplement for their individual needs. We reviewed the research and landed on the following choices.

Editor's Note: BarBend's content is informational, but should not be used as a substitute for the advice and / or supervision of a health professional. The opinions expressed herein are not intended to be used for the diagnosis, prevention and / or treatment of health problems. Talk to your doctor if you have any concerns or before starting a new supplement regimen.

Best together

Garden of Life Probiotics Raw for Women

Garden of Life contains a huge amount of 85 billion bacteria of 32 different strains, intended for everything from intestinal health to immunity. There are also several digestive enzymes that could help with the absorption of nutrients, as well as a series of vitamins and minerals that have been made by bacteria rather than synthetic processes. This means that they can be more easily absorbed than cheap multivitamins.

Advantages

• This also includes four digestive enzymes, which can help with the absorption of nutrients
• Garden of Life also offers a series of vitamins and minerals.
• This product benefits from the Arrive Alive guarantee, which guarantees that the bacteria is still viable once you arrive at your door.
• Unlike many competitors, it is user friendly for vegetarians and contains no gluten, no soy, no fillers, no binders.

The inconvenients

• This probiotic supplement is relatively expensive compared to other products on the market.
• Garden of Life is pretty well known for its vegan products, but note that it contains dairy products.
• The product is designed to be maintained at 71 degrees or less, a feat that can be difficult to achieve with shipping – sometimes cold compresses melt.
• Because it contains a lot of probiotics, this product should be taken with food to avoid stomach upset.

Best for vaginal health

RepHresh Pro-B Probiotic Supplement for Women

RepHresh is intended to balance yeasts and bacteria to reduce the risk of yeast infections, urinary tract infections and vaginosis. The focus on Lactobacilius rhamnosus can have merit, as a 2013 study in European Journal of Medical and Pharmacological Sciences suggested that this is a particularly important strain for preventing bacterial vaginosis.

Advantages

• A HealthCare Partners survey found that it was the preferred probiotic of gynecologists who recommended such supplements.
• The product contains 2.5 billion cultures of two strains believed to replace a major flora.
• RepHresh contains probiotics observed in studies that may improve vaginal health.

The inconvenients

• This product contains only two strains of probiotics.
• The pills are gelatin-based, so it's not friendly for vegetarians.

Best value

Doctor of choice 60 billion probiotics

Physician's Choice provides 60 billion probiotic bacteria from ten different strains. They are combined with a non-GMO organic prebiotic fiber from four different strains. Prebiotics can improve the absorption of probiotics and it is especially a very cheap supplement.

Advantages

• Doctor's Choice offers a very powerful serving of a wide variety of probiotic bacteria.
• This product contains prebiotic organic fibers, which seem to nourish the probiotic bacteria present in the intestine.
• Doctor's Choice attaches a money back guarantee to this product.

The inconvenients

• The probiotic and the prebiotic mix a property, so the amount of each ingredient in it is unclear.
• The size of the very powerful portion can cause indigestion in some consumers.

Best for seniors

Renew Life Adult Probiotic

Aimed at the over 50s, Renew Life focuses on bifidobacteria, which the body seems to contain less than it ages. Consumer satisfaction surveys regularly give good marks to the brand, which comes in the form of a vegetarian-friendly capsule.

Advantages

• Renew Life provides 30 billion probiotic bacteria from 11 different strains.
• The capsules are vegetarian and guaranteed gluten-free and soy-free.
• The bacterium comes in a delayed release capsule, intended to ensure its delivery to the digestive tract (instead of dying in the acid of the stomach).

The inconvenients

• The product does not contain digestive enzymes, which are sometimes also recommended for the health of the intestine in the elderly.
• The dosage is quite high and some consumers report digestive disorders. This is individual, however, and can be improved by taking it with food.

Best Synbiotic

Total health Onnit

Onnit has produced a supplement that combines a wide variety of ingredients to improve digestive health: five strains of probiotic bacteria, over a dozen digestive enzymes and prebiotic fibers. Some research suggests that combining all of these ingredients can improve the effectiveness of the probiotics themselves.

Advantages

• It is one of the few supplements that combines probiotics with prebiotic fibers, which may increase its usefulness.
• This is one of the few probiotic supplements tested by a third party, in this case the BSCG, for purity and effectiveness.
• The pills are supplied in travel packs, making them easy to carry with you on the go.

The inconvenients

• It's one of the most expensive intestinal supplements on the market.
• Some people find that the size of the seven-tablet portion is a bit heavy.

Benefits of probiotics

This is a relatively new area of ​​research. The benefits of adding probiotic bacteria are therefore not as effective as those of vitamin C, for example, which help prevent scurvy. Nevertheless, interesting research suggests that a healthy population of intestinal bacteria could contribute to the following areas.

Digestion

Supplementation with probiotics can help improve the absorption of nutrients and reduce digestive problems such as gas and bloating. (1)

Inflammation

Inflammation, the body's stress response, can be chronic and lead to a wide variety of disorders, including heart disease, cancer, diabetes and Alzheimer's disease – the WHO classifies chronic inflammatory diseases as the main cause of death in the world. Some clinical trials have shown that probiotics reduce clinical symptoms and blood markers of inflammation (2) (3).

Mental Health

Stress can cause indigestion and the connection may also be reversed: there is some evidence that an unhealthy population of intestinal bacteria increases the risk of stress and anxiety. (4) (5) (6)

Performance of the exercise

Some studies have suggested that a healthy gut can help improve fatigue recovery, better recovery from workouts, and reduce the level of stress induced by exercise (7) ( 8) (9)

Improved vaginal PH

It is particularly interesting for some consumers to prove that certain strains, such as Lactobacillus rhamnosus, could potentially treat bacterial vaginosis and reduce the risk of urinary tract infections. (10) (11)

Skin health

Some studies have shown that supplementation of certain strains of Lactobacilius and Bifidobacterium could treat acne better than placebos (12) (13). A Russian study even revealed that 54% of people with acne suffered from a disturbance of intestinal flora (14).

BarBend Tips

• Some consumers, especially with the most powerful supplements, report indigestion and bloating. Ensuring that you take your supplement with your biggest meal of the day can help improve this potential problem.
• Some evidence suggests that the combination of probiotic fiber and prebiotic fiber can increase the effects. Therefore, consider taking a supplement including both or taking your probiotics with a high fiber meal, especially if it contains sources of prebiotic fiber such as garlic, onions, asparagus, etc. artichokes
• Probiotics may be useful for digestive health, but consider a holistic approach: adequate sleep, fiber, exercise and stress management all play a role in maintaining your digestion smoothly.

To take away

A healthy bowel can go a long way in improving various aspects of your health: nutrient absorption, inflammation, immunity, etc. Combining probiotics with prebiotic fiber and possibly digestive enzymes is a wise choice, but remember that keeping your gut healthy also involves lifestyle strategies such as eating enough fiber, Exercise regularly, minimize stress and get enough sleep. If you have concerns about one or the other of these aspects of your health, talk to a doctor.

References

1. Kechagia M, et al. Health benefits of probiotics: a review. ISRN Nutr. January 2, 2013: 481651.
2. Carvalho, B.M. et al. Influence of the gut microbiota on subclinical inflammation and insulin resistance. Inflamm mediators. 2013; 2013: 986734.
3. Plaza-Diaz, J. et al. Evidence of the anti-inflammatory effects of probiotics and synbiotics in chronic intestinal diseases. Nutrients. 2017 June; 9 (6): 555.
4. Messaoudi, M. et al. Evaluation of the psychotropic properties of a probiotic formulation (Lactobacillus helveticus R0052 and Bifidobacterium longum R0175) in rats and humans. Br J Nutr. March 2011; 105 (5): 755-64.
5. Schmidt, K. et al. The intake of prebiotics reduces the response of cortisol upon waking and alters emotional biases in healthy volunteers. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2015 May; 232 (10): 1793-801.
6. Desbonnet, L. et al. Effects of probiotic Bifidobacterium infantis in the maternal separation model of depression. Neuroscience. November 10, 2010; 170 (4): 1179-88.
7. Mach N et al. Exercise of endurance and intestinal microbiota: a report. J Sport Health Sci. 2017 June; 6 (2): 179-197.
8. Jäger, R. et al. The probiotic supplement of Streptococcus thermophilus FP4 and Bifidobacterium breve BR03 attenuates decreases in performance and range of motion after exercise of muscle damage. the utrients. October 14, 2016, 8 (10).
9. Jäger, R. et al. Probiotic Bacillus coagulans GBI-30, 6086 reduces exercise-induced muscle damage and increases recovery. Peerj. July 21, 2016; 4: e2276.
10. Parma M et al. The role of vaginal Lactobacillus Rhamnosus (Normogin®) in the prevention of bacterial vaginosis in women with a history of recurrence, in surgical menopause: a prospective pilot study. Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci. 2013 may; 17 (10): 1399-403.
11. Cribby S, et al. Vaginal microbiota and use of probiotics. Interdiscip Perspect Infect Dis. 2008; 2008: 256490.
12. Marchetti F, et al. [Efficacy of regulators of the intestinal bacterial flora in the therapy of acne vulgaris]. Clin Ter. September 15, 1987; 122 (5): 339-43.
13. Roudsari MR, et al. Effects on the skin of probiotics on health. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr. 2015; 55 (9): 1219-40.
14. Panigrahi P, et al. A randomized synbiotic trial to prevent sepsis in infants in rural India. Nature. August 24, 2017; 548 (7668): 407-412.
15. Patel R, et al. New approaches for bacteriotherapy: prebiotics, new generation probiotics and synbiotics. Clin Infect Dis. May 15, 2015; 60 Suppl 2: S108-21.