The Good Bacteria Story
Lactobacillus Salivarius
A healthy intestine rich with proper bacteria leads to good bowel movements, vitamin and hormone production and a long list of other health benefits.
If you have a healthy intestinal tract, you have over 400 different species of microorganisms living there. They make up about two pounds of your body weight! In the stomach very few are able to survive because of the acidity. In fact, there may be as few as 10 to 100 organisms in every milliliter of stomach content. In the small intestine there might be anywhere from 100 to 1000 organisms per milliliter. As you reach the junction between the small and large intestine the number begins to grow. In the large intestine or colon, as many as one trillion organisms per milliliter are common (see Modern Nutrition in Health and Disease, Golden).
Good Bacteria Do Several Things
1. ACIDIFY THE COLON – The ideal pH of the colon is between 6.7 and 6.9. Acetic acid and lactic acid are some of the by-products that help do this. The acid environment inhibits the growth of harmful bacteria such as salmonella, which causes food poisoning, shigella, the cause of diarrhea and E-Coli, which can cause intestinal disease and kidney failure. Good bacteria also produce a volatile fatty acid, which along with the other acids, make it difficult for fungus and yeast (candida) to survive.
2. NORMALIZE BOWEL MOVEMENTS – Good bacteria can decrease the time it takes for waste products to move through the digestive system. They also stop diarrhea and correct constipation.
3. IMPROVE THE ABILITY OF THE IMMUNE SYSTEM – They help stimulate the formation of antibodies which protect our bodies against infectious disease.
4. HELP PRODUCE VITAMINS – Good bacteria help produce Vitamin K, which is necessary for blood clotting and the formation of new bone.
5. AID IN PRODUCTION OF LACTASE – This is an enzyme necessary to digest milk and milk products. Without lactase milk allergies are a sure thing.
6. REMOVE TOXIC ELEMENTS – The L. Salivarius deactivates various toxic compounds produced by other organisms or from foods.
7. ARE INSTRUMENTAL IN REDUCING CHOLESTEROL – A high fiber diet and good bacterial flora can lower cholesterol levels, protect against colon cancer and even improve fat digestion by providing more bile acids.
8. ELIMINATE GAS PROBLEMS – Proper bacteria in the colon eliminate bowel gas and sweeten the breath. Bad breath (halitosis) is very frequently caused when the wrong bacteria take over in the colon and produce foul smelling waste. These gases can be expelled or reabsorbed into the blood and carried to the lung and exhaled. All the breath mints in the world won’t correct bad breath caused by bowel problems.
Symptoms Associated with Inadequate Bowel Flora
The following is a partial list of common problems associated with inadequate bowel flora:
- Chronic diarrhea
- Constipation
- Breast enlargement in men
- Menstrual problems
- Hormonal problems
- Severe bruising problems
- Candida infections
- High cholesterol levels
- Chronic vaginal infections
- Chronic bladder infections
- Intestinal gas
- P.M.S.
- Dairy product allergies
- Prostate trouble
- Chronic bad breath
- Osteoporosis
- Chronic anemia
- Vitamin B deficiency
A diet high in sugar or the use of antibiotics, excessive alcohol, fluoridated and/or chlorinated water supplies, radiation therapy, exposure to toxic metals, pollutants, radiation or the use of non-steroid inflammatory drugs can all greatly increase your chances of having intestinal flora problems.
The pH of your stool plays a big role. It should be slightly acidic, about 6.7 to 6.9. Generally, an alkaline pH (about 7) indicates poor bacterial flora; whereas a very acid stool pH can occur with excessive amounts of sugar in the diet, or conditions that cause diarrhea.
LACTOBACILLUS SALIVARIUS – is a strain of bacteria that flourishes in the small intestine and offers many benefits. It produces a natural antibiotic called acidophin, which helps protect you against several harmful strains of bacteria you may encounter. It makes the bowels more acidic by producing lactic acid (it even forms hydrogen peroxide), which in turn destroys certain types of disease causing bacteria in the bowel.
Intestinal gas is one of the prime symptoms indicating the need to re-establish a good growth of friendly bacteria in the bowel. If you suffer from this problem L. Salivarius can help you, but you need to be aware of one important point. The optimum pH range for gas-producing organisms in the bowel is from 7.2 to 7.3 (slightly alkaline). If you start taking L. Salivarius and it begins to lower a pH that is higher than 7.3, your bowels will gradually pass through the gas producing range. In other words, your gas problem may actually get worse before it gets better. Don’t give up, however, because as the pH reaches the ideal range of 6.7 to 6.9, you’ll see a multitude of benefits occurring.
Modern medicine can poison your body even when it is trying to heal it. Antibiotics, for example, exert a powerful negative influence on intestinal bacteria regardless of whether they are the “disease producing” kind, or the healthy, “friendly” bacteria, essential for good health.
These much-needed “good” bacteria are of vital importance to your overall health. These bacteria are important for the proper functioning of the metabolism and also in enabling the defense mechanism of the immune system.
Healthy intestinal bacteria are able to produce the B-complex vitamins in quantities and supply them to the organism in the proper amounts. This means that the B vitamins do not necessarily have to be consumed in large amounts with our food.
The processing and absorption of vitamins – vitamin synthesis – is the responsibility of intestinal bacteria, and takes place in the colon, so having poor intestinal flora can cause vitamin deficiencies.
Vitamin K-1 is produced by the “friendly” bacteria. This vitamin is essential for a healthy liver. If, for any reason, vitamin K synthesis is disturbed, this may hinder blood coagulation.
The overwhelming majority of all immune organisms (between 70 to 80 percent) are located in the intestinal wall. To be most effective, the friendly bacteria have to be abundant.
Intestinal bacteria live in immune-biologically balanced symbiosis; there is an immune-biological interaction between the organism and the intestinal bacteria. An imbalance of the bacterial life in the intestines can contribute to various diseases.
Therefore, a proper balance of friendly bacteria is essential for good health and a good digestive system. Otherwise, any imbalance may make the body susceptible to such ailments as arthritis, arteriosclerosis, rheumatic diseases, digestive problems, skin problems such as acne, eczema and rashes, problems with the liver and gallbladder, failing memory, hypertension and fatigue, eye problems, migraine headaches, and gout, to name just a few.
Keep in mind that the L. Salivarius are living organisms, and as a result, they are highly susceptible to dying off and losing their effectiveness. They should be taken on an empty stomach 20 to 40 minutes before meals when your digestive acids and juices are not being produced in large quantities.
Currently, almost everyone thinks the only reason they would ever have to take lactobacillus would be if they had some type of bowel problem. Unfortunately, even the best health practitioners fall victim to this type of thinking. The friendly bacteria in your bowels have far-reaching effects you’ve probably never dreamed of. These hard working organisms produce a variety of substances that can: prevent cancerous tumors; inactivate viruses; produce natural antibodies and vitamins; reduce cholesterol and new research has linked these bacteria with even more wonders.
