Gut Love: 3 Facts About Prebiotics Your Tummy Will Adore

By Keri Glassman, MS, RD, CDN

If you’re a regular reader of ours, you know how important it is to give your gut some love. Often, we talk about supporting good digestive health by incorporating probiotics into your daily regimen. But just as important as probiotics are prebiotics. In fact, the two work in synergy to keep your gut happy and healthy.

New survey data, reveals that nearly 60% of Americans are more familiar with probiotics than with prebiotics, and about a third of Americans confused the two altogether. To clear up the confusion, we’re going to share some facts about the importance of both probiotics and prebiotics—and how they can help you to help your gut.

Fact 1: Prebiotics are the food for probiotics.

There are trillions of bacteria swimming around in your large intestine, and not all of them are good for you. The good bacteria, you probably have heard by now, are called probiotics. They help you to digest food and stimulate the growth of even more beneficial bacteria in the gut, which helps keep your immune system strong and balanced.

Prebiotics are a specific type of fiber that play a supporting but vital role in feeding those probiotics. Prebiotics are not bacteria, but rather nondigestible compounds which serve as food sources for the healthy bacteria in your gut delivering benefits to your microbiome. They travel down to your lower digestive tract and become a food source for the healthy bacteria in your gut.

During digestion, prebiotic foods are fermented in the gut to produce compounds like short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) that provide critical energy to the cells of the intestines. SCFAs are also associated with inhibiting the growth of colon cancer cells and supporting healthy blood sugar and cholesterol levels.

Fact 2: Most Americans don’t get enough fiber in their diets, so adding a supplement to your daily routine can be a good alternative.

It’s always best to try to get your nutrients through the food you eat. But, according to one study, only 5% of Americans consume the recommended daily amount of fiber. That’s a pretty sad statistic, which is why we sometimes suggest a fiber supplement to many people who aren’t getting 21 to 38 grams of fiber in their diet each day, in addition to upping their intake of high-fiber foods.

Even better than supplementing with fiber is supplementing with a product that includes fiber with prebiotic benefits—which helps nourish the growth of the good bacteria that naturally exist in your gut while fighting off harmful bacteria.

A fiber powder can be super easy to add into your daily wellness routine. You can stir it into a smoothie or just add to water in the morning or sprinkle it into a recipe. It’s that simple.

Fact 3: Stress can wreak havoc on your gut health, but prebiotics can help.

How can prebiotics possibly help reduce stress, you ask? Well, it comes down to the mind-gut connection, which is the relationship between our digestive system and brain. The connection between the two is super tight and communication between them can impact everything from emotions and moods to decision-making and behavior.

According to a recent study conducted by the University of Surrey, young women who took a prebiotic supplement once a day experienced reduced anxiety, better gut health and improved mental well-being.

In our current world, managing stress and anxiety couldn’t be more important.

About Keri Glassman, MS, RD, CDN

Keri Glassman, MS, RD, CDN, is a renowned celebrity nutritionist, healthy cooking expert, and wellness thought-leader. She is the founder and CEO of Nutritious Life and The Nutritious Life Studio, an online certification that provides unparalleled, forward-thinking education to individuals of various backgrounds looking to establish successful careers in the health and wellness industry.