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Your gut microbiome is filled with trillions of bacterial organisms.
A well-functioning gut microbiome is one that has the right balance of bacteria to help absorb nutrients in the foods you eat.
A diet high in sugar and fat can fuel “bad” bacteria, and possibly even prevent the growth of “good” bacteria.
A healthy diet high in soluble fiber promotes the growth of good—or "beneficial"— bacteria.
Just like a fingerprint, you have a unique composition of gut bacteria that is based on:
- What you eat
- Your age
- Where you live
- How you live
- Your genetics
This is why it’s so important to cultivate a healthy assortment of good bacteria in your gut.
This is achieved by doing more than just following a gut-microbiome-friendly eating plan. To develop and maintain an optimal gut microbiome, you need to have the right mix of probiotics (bacterial strains) and prebiotics (food for those bacterial strains).
What are probiotics and prebiotics?
You may be familiar with probiotics, which are "friendly" strains of bacteria found in foods such as yogurt, pickles, and sourdough.
Probiotics can also be ingested in a pill that contains one or more strains of bacteria.
While probiotics can help maintain a healthy gut microbiome, the important role of prebiotics is often overlooked.
Prebiotics are considered "fuel" that help the probiotics in your body grow and thrive.
Prebiotics are typically composed of fiber and can be found in foods such as:
- Flaxseed
- Garlic
- Asparagus, and
- Chicory root
Because they are found in foods with complex carbohydrates, prebiotics are better able to withstand the journey through the upper-digestive tract.
An ideal prebiotic:
- Is resistant to stomach acid and other intestinal enzymes
- Is not absorbed in the upper-gastrointestinal tract
- Is easily fermentable by the gut microflora
Because probiotics and prebiotics work together, it’s important to have the right balance of both in your diet to optimize your intestinal microbiome. It’s often recommended that you take them together to get the best results.
What are synbiotics?
Synbiotics are products that contain both prebiotics and probiotics.
Taking the right mix of prebiotics and probiotics can be complicated, which is why synbiotics have emerged as a solution.
Combining the right prebiotic with the optimal probiotic strains of bacteria creates a synergy that improves the survival and growth of the microflora—especially in the upper intestinal tract.
Because probiotics need prebiotics to survive, it’s important to have the right amount of both.
Over time, your body may lose beneficial bacteria, which can impact your ability to effectively process carbohydrates, sugars, and fibers, and also absorb the nutrients and enzymes from your food.
Eventually, this can affect your blood-glucose levels.
Pendulum Therapeutics has developed a formula that contains targeted strains of good bacteria, along with a prebiotic that helps restore your body’s ability to metabolize fiber and maintain healthy blood-glucose levels.
A clinical study has shown that in people with Type 2 diabetes, Pendulum Glucose Control lowered A1C levels and decreased blood-sugar spikes after meals.
The proprietary probiotic blend contains five bacterial strains, including:
- Clostridium beijerinckii WB-STR-0005
- Clostridium butyricum WB-STR-0006
- Akkermansia muciniphila WB-STR-0001
- Anaerobutyricum hallii WB-STR-0008 and
- Bifidobacterium infantis 100
In addition to five strains of bacteria, Pendulum Glucose Control also contains inulin, which is found in chicory root and is the prebiotic that is an essential food for the Pendulum Glucose Control bacterial strains.
In a pre-clinical trial, it observed that without the inulin prebiotic, there was significantly diminished efficacy of Pendulum's probiotic strains.
This is why it’s important to have a synbiotic that contains both probiotics and a prebiotic.
References:
Before you consider any of these gut-microbiome dietary solutions, talk to your healthcare provider.
The FDA has not approved or evaluated these statements. Pendulum products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any diseases. Results may vary.