Probiotics – a term that holds no anonymity in recent years, especially concerning their influential role in maintaining the gut health of both men and women. However, the probiotic benefits for women and men vary due to biological differences.
Probiotics have created quite a noticeable buzz around their beneficial role in regulating women’s gut and vaginal health. That’s why all women need to educate themselves on the significance of probiotics in maintaining women’s health.
Before we explain the benefits of probiotics, let’s quickly address the elephant in the room. i.e., What are probiotics?
What are Probiotics?
According to the FAO/WHO, Probiotics are live microorganisms that provide numerous health benefits to the host when consumed in adequate amounts.
These good bacteria help support your gut health, digestive issues, vaginal health, and even your mental health. Consider them your tiny avengers with multiple superpowers.
Probiotic Benefits for Women
1. They help you maintain a healthy gut.
Wipe out harmful bacteria:
Probiotics, aka the good microbes, help your body flush out bad bacteria by boosting the growth of healthy microbes in your gut.
This balance is vital for a healthy gut, specifically for women, as they face more digestive issues than men. Digestive issues could be due to an unhealthy diet, antibiotics intake, menstrual cycle, pregnancy, etc.
Aids in digestion:
Consuming a probiotic-rich diet can promote a healthy gut microbiome and helps in improving digestion.
Relieves bloating and constipation:
Studies have highlighted the proven role of probiotics in relieving constipation and bloating. These two digestive issues are more common in women than men, especially during periods and pregnancy.
Reduce the symptoms of different types of Diarrhea:
According to research, Probiotics are also beneficial in treating travelers and antibiotic-associated diarrhea.
Alternate therapy for chronic digestive problems:
Probiotics help deal with chronic digestive disorders or diseases. Recent study claims of using probiotics as an alternative therapy for Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
2. They help maintain your vaginal health.
Keeps hormonal and microbial imbalance in check:
Your vaginal microbiome is your first line of defense against infections. Any imbalance in the normal microbiome can lead to serious health complications like
UTIs and bacterial infections.
Probiotics help your immune system flush out harmful microbes and help in restoring the normal vaginal microbiome.
Helps with UTIs and other conditions like endometriosis:
A recent study has shown probiotics’ effectiveness in reducing the symptoms of UTIs.
Another recent research highlighted the influential role of probiotics as pain relievers in women with endometriosis.
3. They boost your immunity and help regulate your body system.
Probiotics and your Immunity:
Probiotics help your immune system restore the normal microbiome, which is affected due to antibiotic intake, unhealthy diet, stress, and diseases.
Probiotics are also known for their role in regulating hormone levels.
4. They help you with weight management.
Probiotics help in maintaining a healthy body weight. They help you lose body fats, especially your belly fats.
A 2020 study has shown the influential role of probiotics in weight management by regulating the release of leptin hormone (responsible for suppressing appetite).
5. They help you maintain healthy skin.
Good microbes vs. Bad microbes:
Your skin is home to a gazillion good microbes constantly battling out the bad ones. Probiotics lend a helping hand in keeping the balance of good microbiota in your skin.
Dealing with common skin problems like acne and eczema:
Probiotics effectively reduce the severity of various skin allergies and
eczema. They prevent acne by maintaining overall good bacteria in your skin’s microbiota.
Recent studies also highlight the anti-aging effects of probiotics.
Other surprisingly significant benefits of Probiotics.
- Gestational Diabetes (GD): Probiotics may help prevent gestational diabetes in pregnant women.
- Maintain Cholesterol: Some studies claim probiotics may help reduce bad cholesterol (LDL). However, the research in that area still needs to be improved
- Mental health: Some research has highlighted the role of probiotics in reducing the symptoms of depression and anxiety in patients dealing with it.
Probiotics are undoubtedly your gut microbiome’s best friends. However, the effectiveness of probiotics varies because each individual has a unique microbiome in their system.
Therefore, you should always speak with your doctor before beginning a probiotic supplement regimen to treat a particular health concern. Consuming probiotics through natural resources is highly recommended for overall health management.
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