Probiotics Can Help - Sometimes

Probiotics, helpful bacteria added to foods or taken in pill form, are one of the hottest trends in the food world. Of course, like most things in this world that sound good in concept, the reality of the helpfulness of probiotics depend on a million factors.

Eliza Zied, a registered dietitian, is a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association and co-author of Feed Your Family Right! and So What Can I Eat?! She wrote an article on probiotics for MSNBC.com trying to separate out hype from reality.

While you don't need probiotics in your diet to be healthy, people with mild digestive concerns, who are taking antibiotics or those who are lactose intolerant might benefit from certain probiotics, studies suggest.

Probiotics can be helpful for specific conditions such as diarrhea, lactose intolerance or Crohn's disease. ...

While studies have shown that doses between approximately 100 million and 1 billion colony forming units (CFUs) are effective for enhancing immune function, decreasing intestinal infections, and improving digestion and bowel function, the amount of probiotics you’ll need to consume to see a real effect will vary among strains. You need to consume a probiotic food every day to get the desired effect and it may take a week or two to experience specific results — such as a decrease in gas or bloating, or a higher tolerance to dairy foods. If after a few weeks you don’t feel results, try another similar product to see if it works any better.

However, probiotics don’t work the same in everyone. Probiotics may be more effective in older people than in younger ones since more mature bellies may have fewer good bacteria. There’s also some evidence that genetic factors — that is, how much good and bad bacteria you have in your gut — can affect your reaction to probiotics.