Synbiotics
Fermented milks (yogurt and kefir) are considered to be true synbiotic products, that is, functional foods, since they supply the live bacteria and the food they need to survive. However, evidentally not all such products promote symbiosis. The best synbiotic combinations currently available include bifidobacteria and fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS), Lactobacillus GG and inulins, and bifidobacteria and lactobacilli with FOS or inulins.
The main reason for using a synbiotic is that a true probiotic, without its prebiotic food, does not survive well in the digestive system. To enhance viability, not only on the shelf but also in the colon, the product must allow for much greater attachment and growth rate of the healthy bacteria in order to minimize the growth of harmful bacteria.
Without the necessary food source for the probiotic, it will have a greater intolerance for oxygen, low pH, and temperature. In addition, the probiotic will have to compete against other bacteria that will take over if its specific food source is not available. Therefore, a “symbiotic” product (probiotic + prebiotic = synbiotic) makes for a better choice.
Synbiotic Characteristics
- Antimicrobial qualities may result more so from the probiotic components than the prebiotic. Beneficial bacteria reinforce the intestinal walls by crowding out pathogenic organisms, thereby helping to prevent their attachment to where they can cause disease. Probioic bacteria also stimulate antigen specific and nonspecific immune responses.
- Anticarcinogenic qualities are not well understood, but what is speculated is that the sugars that are fermented by the bacteria form into substances that may inhibit the growth of carcinogenic cells. Prebiotic sugars help to increase calcium and magnesium in the colon which, in turn, assist in controling the rate of cell turnover and the formation of insoluble bile or fatty acid salts, which can have damaging effects. Probiotic bacteria have the ability to bind to and inactivate some carcinogens. This may directly inhibit the growth of some tumors, as well as any bacteria that may convert matter into carcinogens.
- Antidiarrheal aspects are successful through the crowding out of pathogens known to cause diarrhea. Since they also strengthen the intestinal wall, this, too, would help prevent diarrhea.
- Antiallergenic qualities may be helpful in such cases as food allergies since the probiotic bacteria help to reinforce the barrier function of the intestinal wall, thereby possibly preventing the absorption of some antigens.
- Osteoporosis prevention may occur as a result of an improvement in mineral absorption and balance. This ability comes as a result of oligosaccharides (3-6 sugar chains) which bind such minerals as calcium and magnesium in the small intestine, but releasing them in the large intestine where they are better absorbed. Fatty acids, also formed from the fermentation process, will then assist with the absorption of these minerals.
- Reduces serum fats and blood sugars in some individuals. Although not well understood, prebiotics appear to lower triglyceride levels, as well as total cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol levels. As for its ability to normalize serum glucose levels, prebiotics may help by delaying gastric emptying and/or shorten the transit time through the small intestine. In addition, a substance released through fermentation (propionate) appears to make better use of the glucose molecule conversion.
- Regulates the immune system since probiotic bacteria are known to have the ability to increase the levels of circulating immunoglobulin A (IgA). In addition, they enhance nonspecific immune mechanisms, such as increasing phagocyte activity.
- Treating liver-related brain dysfunction using synbiotics holds promise according to a study published in the May 2004 issue of Hepatology. The article states that synbiotics and fermentable fiber not only have a beneficial effect on the liver but also on a brain dysfunction that affects many who have liver disease. This dysfunction results in changes in behavior, intelligence, consciousness, and neuromuscular function.
Digestion
How effective a synbiotic is depends directly on the various probiotic bacteria’s ability to survive digestive juices as well as the alkaline environment of the duodenum. Another factor to consider is whether or not the bacteria are able to adhere to the intestinal wall to colonize the colon.
As a result, prebiotics are necessary to assist the probiotic since prebiotic sugars (mainly oligosaccharides and disaccharides) are not digested. This enables prebiotics to travel through the digestive tract to help feed the bacteria in the intestines.
These sugars are then fermented by bifidobacteria, lactobacilli, and others in the colon to produce some beneficial by-products that include:
- short-chain fatty acids acetate, propionate and butyrate (an important respiratory fuel for colon cells). These by-products are mainly absorbed from the colon and transported to the liver where they are extensively metabolized. Those that are not metabolized in the liver are circulated to various other tissues for use;
- hydrogen, hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide, and methane gases;
- lactate, pyruvate, succinate, and formate.
Taking a synbiotic product
Consuming a probiotic supplement that also includes the appropriate prebiotic has many beneficial effects. Most importantly, the combination has the ability to heal and regulate the intestinal flora, particularly after the destruction of microorganisms following antibiotic, chemotherapy, or radiation therapies. Without the beneficial organisms throughout the digestive system, proper digestion, absorption, and/or maufacture of nutrients cannot take place.
A synbiotic will also suppress the development of putrefactive processes in the stomach and intestines thus preventing the occurrence of a number of serious diseases: food allergies, ulcerous colitis, constipation, diarrhea, cancers, gastrointestinal infections, and so on.
Typically, a synbiotic product containing one to ten billion active cells, is taken several times a week, if not daily. In cases where antibiotics have been taken, it is sometimes suggested that such a product be taken several times a day, preferably at least 30 minutes before meals.
