7 Ways Probiotics May Be Able To Ease Your Stomach Pain
Nowadays, stomach pain seems to affect nearly every person in the United States.
For some, it’s just a passing bout of discomfort.
For others, stomach pain is a debilitating condition that makes life nearly unbearable.
Whichever camp you fall into, there’s a bit of hope on the horizon in the form of probiotics.
More and more studies are showing that probiotics can treat many different causes of stomach pain.
Let’s take a quick look at 7 common stomach ailments and how probiotics may provide relief…
1. IBS
Although no one is exactly sure of the cause of IBS, it’s thought to affect between 25-45 million peole in the US.
Of those, about one-third are male and two-thirds are female. And the majority are under 50 years old.
Luckily, there’s been some research lately that shows probiotics to be effective in treating IBS and some of its symptoms.
In a study published in 2004 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology, Dr. Kajander concluded that half of his 103 test patients said their IBS symptoms were reduced by 43% after taking probiotics.
Here’s exactly what he had to say, ” Considering the high prevalence of irritable bowel syndrome and the lack of effective therapies… the results indicate that this probiotic mixture is effective in alleviating irritable bowel syndrome symptoms.”
IBS is thought to be partly caused by an overgrowth of pathogenic microorganisms like Clostridia, E. Coli, H. Pylori and Candida.
By controlling and preventing this overgrowth, probiotics have shown promise in easing the suffering of people with IBS.
2. Diarhhea
In 2011, an expert panel at Yale University looked at a great deal of research and studies available on probiotics and came to a few conclusions.
Probiotics, they said, are most effective for treating infectious diarhhea in children.
They also believe probiotics, when taken before a course of antibiotics, prevented diarhhea in adults.
All this research suggests probiotics may be very effective in dealing with the discomfort and pain caused by diarhhea.
3. Digestion Problems
Research has shown that probiotics can be beneficial for the gut, and thus reduce gas, nausea and stress-related digestive difficulty.
Because probiotics produce enzymes like protease and lypase, they can be effective at helping the body break down fats and proteins.
As many of you know, poor digestion is often the result of a lack of these important enzymes.
So re-populating your gut with probiotics can be very helpful with regards to digestion.
4. Lactose Intolerance
It’s thought that approximately 65% of the world’s population has a reduced ability to digest lactose after infancy.
Based on that, it’s probably a good idea for most people to stay away from milk and food that contains too much lactose.
But for those who won’t (or can’t), probiotics may be the answer you’re looking for.
Simply put, probiotics seem to help the body’s ability to digest milk and break down lactose.
5. Ulcers
Ulcers are known to be caused by the bacteria H. Pylori, which is found in a great percentage of the world’s population.
Ulcers occur when the growth of this bacteria gets out of control.
And guess what probiotics do?
That’s right, they help control and stabilize the growth of bacterial colonies.
So probiotics may be beneficial in dealing with ulcers.
6. Constipation
Virtually everyone has suffered from constipation at one point or another.
Early research suggests probiotics may help speed up the passage of food through the digestive tract because they assist in the digestive process.
They also ease the colon and impacted feces, which may improve constipation significantly.
7. Ulcerative Colitis
Remember that Yale study we told you about earlier?
In addition to concluding that probiotics are most effective at treating childhood diarhhea, they also concluded that probiotics helped quite a bit with ulcerative colitis.
While they didn’t go as far as saying probiotics cured this disease, they did suggest they may have value in treating it.
Probiotics are definitely are worthwhile area of study with regards to this disease.
In conclusion…
Many studies over the last 10 years or so have shown that probiotics may be effective at treating a variety of conditions and disease that cause stomach pain.
By repopulating beneficial microbes throughout the stomach and digestive tract, probiotics may hold the answer that scientists and doctors have been searching for for decades.
Although the link between probiotics and stomach pain has been established, more studies are needed to figure out exactly which strains work best as well as what dosage.
As this research progresses, we’ll keep you informed right here on this site!
For now, be sure to check out our list of the 10 best probiotic supplements and follow us on Facebook and Twitter for breaking developments.
