When I lived in the US in the 90s, it was hard to find live-culture yogurt in supermarkets (you could find them in natural food stores, of course). The only one I could find was Stonyfield yogurt.
When I lived in Finland, not only were there a bunch of live-culture milk products, but there was one in particular “Valio A+” that was specifically recommended for women to balance their flora.
Now back in the US, it’s hard not to find live-culture yogurt, and some are specifically marketed, yes, for women to balance their flora. Furthermore, the use of live bacterial cultures for health purposes, called probiotics, has become mainstream enough that you can find probiotic supplements for children in the supermarket.
What does this mean?
It means that folks are becoming aware of functional foods, of the importance of microorganism in their diet, and that the feeding desire to find a short cut (a pill rather than eating wholesome yogurt) is always a good business.
I’ve been seeking out all these probiotic products to get an idea of what’s out there, what the message is, and, for me, always on the look out for practical use of microbes, I’ve been trying to understand what microorganisms are in fashion.
OK, so the science behind probiotics is still in progress, so I will not go into that right now.
But, going on the premise that yogurt is the gold standard for beneficial live (with microorganisms) food, then my standard for all probiotic products used for digestive health is Stonyfield’s yogurt. Stonyfield’s has 6 bacteria (S thermophilus, L bulgaricus, L acidophilus, Bifidus, L casei, and L rhamnosus). I’d say that most of the products I have seen have one or more of these bugs. There are some proprietary sub-species and I’ve been pleased to see a few products with S salivarius or some other bacteria.
For me, the type, variety, and number of bacteria in a probiotic food or supplement is key. And I think it’s just snake oil if the product only has one bug.
Nonetheless, I think as probiotics go mainstream, buyers will be more astute as to what they are looking for. Also, I hope that new applications show up, beyond gut and vaginal flora health (I can think of a few).
What I do know, is that doctors are starting to suggest probiotics to patients on antibiotics or with digestive issues such as colitis or C diff.*
And that’s great.
Do you eat probiotic foods or take supplements? Send me pics of the ones you see or take! I could/should create a database of products and attach reviews or commentary. Hm…. not another project….
*Ego boost: A gastroenterologist aked me recently what probiotics I recommended. Ha! My first probiotic consulting gig?
