Research was recently conducted on the topic of seniors’ health by Reading University in the UK. It concluded that anyone over the age of 60 should be drinking probiotics, eating yogurt, or taking digestive aid pills to help protect them against developing bowel conditions. This includes things like IBS (irritable bowel syndrome).
What This Research Study has Concluded
According to the researchers who conducted this study, you can’t simply choose any probiotic supplement and expect it to work well for you. There are numerous products available for you to choose from today, making it important for you to carefully choose which one you want to take. This is important because about half of the brands that are for sale aren’t as effective as they claim to be.
When looking at probiotics it’s important to choose a product that contains the correct strain of the live bacteria bifidobacteria and lactobacilli. It’s important for these products to prove to their consumers that they not only contain these strains, but they also carry 10 million or more of each of these bacteria. Fortunately, this is something that’s being taken seriously today, and new legislation is forcing manufacturers to provide this information to their customers.
Why Probiotics are Important for the Elderly
Everyone has friendly bacteria living in their gut to help with digesting food and protecting against certain diseases. We must have a good balance of both friendly and harmful bacteria living there to maintain good health. However, researchers found that in comparison to younger adults, elderly people have a lot fewer friendly bacteria living in their intestines. They also have many more harmful bacteria living there than younger adults do. In fact, there are some studies that show the typical 60-year-old only has one thousandth of the number of friendly bacteria living in their intestines as younger adults do. This is why they’re much more likely to develop gastrointestinal infections and bowel issues.
Since the elderly have less of this friendly bacterium, it’s important to maintain the healthy balance that’s necessary by taking probiotics. These can be found in various powders, yogurt, fruit/vegetable juices, and other products that are readily available in a grocery store (or a health food store) near you. Research shows that by taking these probiotics seniors’ health is protected against any complications that may occur when you encounter things like E.coli – the primary bacteria that’s responsible for food poisoning. This study’s head researcher, Glenn Gibson, cited 80 other studies in which bowel conditions reaped positive results by taking probiotics. This included protection against things like traveler’s diarrhea, IBS, and diarrhea that’s caused by taking antibiotics – something that brings up another important note: Anyone who’s taking antibiotics will have a reduced level of bacteria strains in their intestines so they’ll benefit from taking probiotics, regardless of their age.
Another thing that’s important for seniors’ health is good hearing. This is why you should have your hearing checked every year. If you are in need of a hearing exam, call and schedule one with Countryside Hearing Aid Services today.
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