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The word prebiotic was only just coined in 1995. A prebiotic is not a probiotic, which is a beneficial bacteria in yogurt, other dairy products and now pills. Prebiotics are different. Prebiotics are certain types of very specialized plant fibers that the healthy bacteria in your gut use for fuel. Our Prebiotin product is a prebiotin fiber combining oligofructose and inulin, the two most researched and medically credible prebiotic fibers. These good bacteria – aka Probiotics – then provide many health benefits to the colon and body.

A Brief Overview

So, Prebiotin is an all-natural fiber supplement. It is 100% prebiotiic fiber which nourishes your beneficial colon bacteria. And it’s gluten-free, so it can be used by those with Celiac disease.

Here’s some key information to help you decide if a prebiotic like Prebiotin is right for you.

The Research

Independent research indicates that Prebiotics can:

·         Increase Good Colon Bacteria

·         Decrease Bad Colon Bacteria

·         Improve Regularity

·         Increase Calcium Absorption & Bone Density

·         Enhance the Immune System

·         Acidify the Colon

·         Reduce Colon Polyp and Cancer Factors

·         Control Appetite and Weight

·         Decrease Flatus Smell

·         And much more!

Want to understand more? Read on…

The Reasons for Prebiotics & A Few Probiotic Myths

While few are aware of Prebiotics, you may already be familiar with Probiotics. They are not the same thing! Probiotics are beneficial bacteria that live in your digestive system and perform many valuable functions such as assisting with absorption of key nutrients, maintaining proper bowel regularity, etc.

So you should just eat some of the many products containing probiotics, right?

Well, the probiotics themselves won’t harm you, but there is some question whether oral consumption of probiotic bacteria provides great benefit. Of course, you must still pay attention to basic nutrition: a sugary yogurt with probiotics is still sugary. (Note: Those suffering from Celiac disease or other allergy to gluten must ensure their probiotic supplement is gluten-free).

One key issue is simply this: Probiotics are living organisms! By the time these living organisms have been processed, warehoused, shipped, shelved and finally… sold to you, there is a real question about how many are still alive and thriving!

Plus, of those left when you take a pill or eat a yogurt, few likely make it to the colon. Your body has evolved wonderfully to protect you from harmful bacteria. One key way it does this is by killing bacteria as they pass through the potent hydrochloric acid in the stomach. Unfortunately, the good bacteria can get killed along with the bad. Very, very few likely make it through, so some truly massive doses would be required to fully populate your colon just with oral probiotics.

A more successful strategy may be to nourish and protect the probiotic bacteria that already live in your colon.

Why a Prebiotic Supplement?

Even a healthy, high-fiber diet may not contain enough prebiotic soluble fiber. And those with issues like Ulcerative Colitis or Celiac disease may need to avoid insoluble fibers or gluten. Frankly, it can be tough to get enough prebiotic! That’s why we created Prebiotin – to nourish a healthy digestive tract by ensuring a good supply of prebiotic fiber.

But exactly what prebiotic do we need? Well, a true prebiotic must fulfill three criteria: It must nourish the good probiotics, it must NOT nourish undesirable bacteria, and it must produce observable health benefits.

Only two fibers currently meet this full definition. Oligofructose and Inulin. Prebiotin is made from oligofructose-enriched inulin—a combination of the only two fibers that meet the full definition of a Prebiotic. And for those of you with wheat allergy or Celiac disease, you can be comfortable since both oligofructose and inulin are gluten-free.

So whether you have a digestive disorder, or simply want to support good colon health, Prebiotin prebiotic fiber supplement can be your partner in creating a Wonderful Colon.

Still want more info? Read on for the “full version”

The Complete Prebiotic Story

How the Gut Works

 The stomach is the reservoir that collects the food and liquid we eat and drink. It grinds up the food and ejects it in little amounts into the small bowel. The small bowel is over 20 feet long and receives digestive juices and enzymes from the liver and pancreas. The food is digested in the small bowel. This means that the calories, minerals, vitamins, carbohydrates, amino acids and fats are absorbed into the blood stream and carried throughout the body.

The residue from the small bowel flows into the colon which is about five feet long. This is where fiber enters the picture. Fiber comes from plant material. It is mostly unused by the small bowel and is not digested. It enters the colon pretty much as it left the stomach. In the past, we knew the colon was packed with bacteria but did not understand it very well. The colon was viewed simply as a waste depot, as this last residue moved to the rectum and was evacuated.

The Top 10 Benefits of Prebiotics

1.       Improve bowel regularity

2.       Increase bone density

3.       Increase calcium absorption

4.       Increase colon immunity factors

5.       Reduce triglyceride level

6.       Produce vitamins B12 and vitamin K

7.       Reduce allergies-infants and children

8.       Control appetite and weight

9.       Decrease bad colon bacteria

10.   Increase good colon bacteria

The History of Fiber

At one time before farming occurred and animals were domesticated, our ancestors wandered around, eating berries, fruits, root vegetables and any plant that promised to have some nutrition. The diet contained 50-100 grams of fiber a day, all of it from plant material. Interestingly, one of the best studied prebiotics fibers, inulin, has been found in over 36,000 plants, so these people were eating a lot of this beneficial fiber.

Then came villages with farming, growing grains, and raising livestock. Fiber intake gradually diminished. Furthermore, in Westernized countries, fiber was removed from the grains as it was felt to be useless. We were left with white bread without fiber and many of the minerals and vitamins. The food industries also began boxing and packaging food products in ways that required further changes to basic foods . Many substances were added to prolong shelf life and enhance taste but they did not contribute to health as far as we knew. High fructose corn syrup was found to be as sweet as sugar and replaced it in many drinks and foods, as it was much cheaper. This corn derivative and other sweeteners were used in many products and have resulted in or are associated with the epidemic of obesity we now see in our society. Food fiber was side-lined as an important factor in the diet.

Fiber Now

Fiber has made a comeback, however. By its very definition, fiber is not digested and broken down in the small intestine. Rather, it moves on down into the colon. In the 1970s and 80s, we learned that there were two major types of fiber – insoluble fiber and soluble fiber. Insoluble fiber is not acted on or fermented in the colon. It provides no nutrition to the bacteria there. It does, however, hold lots of water and, in so doing, helps to get a softer, more regular bowel movement. Soluble fiber, on the other hand, is used by colon bacteria as a food source.

Another major development has been an understanding of the dramatic and major role that bacteria within the colon play in maintaining good health. In short, we benefit enormously from the bacteria in our colon and what goes on there. The soluble fibers are a key part of this story. The ones that provide the most benefits are called prebiotics. These are health fibers. While there are many “candidate” prebiotics fibers, just a few have been studied to the extent that researchers and physician understand just what they can do and can feel confident in recommending foods that contain them as well as prebiotic supplements such as Prebiotin, which use them.

The Journal of Nutrition

This above publication is the science publication of the American Society for Nutrition, one of the most prestigious and highly regarded nutrition journals in the world. It is peer reviewed, meaning each article is reviewed by experts in the field before it is published. This journal published two supplements in 2007.

These two reviews are the most up-to-date and best referenced materials on prebiotics. Abstracts are readily available online by clicking either of these sites.

Prebiotics – The Best Definition

The experts in this field have gradually come to the conclusion that a prebiotic by valid experimental and research work do the following:

1.       They are not digested by the small bowel.

2.       They are fermented by the good bacteria in the colon.

3.       Most importantly, this fermentation is accompanied by beneficial and measurable good results in the colon and the body.

This is pretty simple but only the soluble prebiotics fibers, inulin, oligofructose and a mixture of the two, called oligofructose enriched inulin, are felt to have measured up to these three guidelines. Jackson GI Medical is committed to providing only medically-credible supplements. That is why our Prebiotin soluble fiber supplement uses only oligofructose enriched inulin to provide support for a healthy colon.

Oligofructose Enriched Inulin

Inulin is present in high concentrations in chicory root, dandelions and others. It is present to a lesser extent in bananas, wheat, onions, asparagus, rye and barley. Indeed, it has been found in over 36,000 plants around the world. Oligofructose, also present in these foods, is a similar fiber. Very surprisingly, Americans get only about 2 grams/day of these fibers, 70% from wheat and 20% from onions. Europeans eat three times this amount. Somehow our food industries and our eating habits have simply bypassed this remarkable fiber. These soluble prebiotic fibers have by far the most science behind them. Much of the research in the science literature, in fact, has been done where inulin and oligofructose have been combined.

The mixture of these two fibers is called oligofructose enriched inulin. It seems to provide a synergy whereby the mixture of the two has been found to be more effective in producing beneficial results than either one by itself. The laboratory, animal and human studies reported in the medical literature are impressive. Our oligofructose enriched inulin product, Prebiotin™, uses 100% pure and natural oligofructose enriched inulin.   

Prebiotics for the Healthy

The colon is a health maintenance organ if its bacteria are fed properly. The specific areas of good health that science is beginning to uncover are:

·         Improved bowel regularity

·         Increased number of good colon bacteria species, especially the Bifidobacter and Lactobacillus species.

·         Decreased number of presumed bad bacteria species, especially the Clostridium and Bacteroides species

·         Increased absorption of calcium and magnesium. The data here is especially strong with young teenage girls increasing their bone mass 20% after one year of taking prebiotics

·         Increased immune strength in the colon’s own cells. Some of this experimental data is very impressive.

·         Better glycemic and blood sugar control

·         They have been found to modulate factors that could lead to colon polyps and cancer when studied in animals.

·         Effect on aging, appetite and weight loss. The data on these is very early and nothing conclusive has been demonstrated. Still, good scientists are intensely studying these outcomes.

If this sounds like something you’d like going on with your health and in your colon, check out Priobiotin today.

Summary

Prebiotics food fibers are a very recent development in the medical, research and health fields. A large body of research information has been occurring at the same time that we in the medical field are getting a much better grasp of the function of the bacterial makeup within the colon. How these newly discovered prebiotics fibers and the colon’s own bacteria interact in such a positive manner is a truly exciting new frontier in enhancing the health of the community and every person who understands and acts on this new information.

 Research References: Effects of Probiotics and Prebiotics

Prebiotics: The Concept Revisited:  Marcel Roberfroid ; J Nutr. 2007; 137: 830S

Prebiotics, Probiotics, and Synbiotics Affect Mineral Absorption, Bone Mineral Content, and Bone Structure:   Katharina E. Scholz-Ahrens et al; J Nutr. 2007; 137: 838S

Probiotics and Prebiotics: Effects on Diarrhea:  Michael de Vrese, Philippe R. Marteau; J Nutr. 2007; 137: 803S

Inulin and Oligofructose: Health Benefits and Claims – A Critical Review

Prebiotic Capacity of Inulin-Type Fructans:  Sofia Kolida, Glenn R. Gibson; J Nutr. 2007; 137: 2503S

Inulin and Oligofructose and Mineral Metabolism: The Evidence from Animal Trials: Katharina E. Scholz-Ahrens, Jürgen Schrezenmeir ; J Nutr. 2007; 137: 2513S

Inulin and Oligofructose: Review of Experimental Data on Immune Modulation:  Stephanie Seifert and Bernhard Watzl; J Nutr. 2007; 137: 2563S

More Prebiotics Research & References

 

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