The Many Foods, That Contain Probiotics

Many people have heard of eating yogurt while taking antibiotics, but why? Yogurt contains probiotics which are defined by The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations as "live microorganisms administered in adequate amounts which confer a beneficial health effect on the host". This "good bacteria" found in yogurt, is already in your intestines and colon. These good bacteria can be killed while antibiotics are also killing disease-causing bacteria, if you eat yogurt while on antibiotics it puts the good bacteria back in your guts to properly digest your food and make sure you get all the nutrients and vitamins from your food.

Probiotics also ensure your immune system is working properly. The active cultures in yogurt can help with lactose intolerance, diarrhea, cramping, and constipation because the lactic acid bacteria in yogurt put lactase in the body to help digest lactose, milk sugar. Of course yogurt is also good for you because it contains calcium which is good for your bones.

There are many yogurts containing probiotics that you can find. Dannon sells Activia, DanActive, and Danimals all containing Lactobacillus GG, which can help in regulating your digestive system. Yo-Plus from Yoplait, Stony Field Farm, Redwood Hill Farm and Creamery, Painted Pepper Farm, Old Chatham Sheepherding Company, and Whole Soy & Co. all carry yogurts with probiotics. You can even find probiotics in frozen yogurts at TCBY and Cold Stone Creamery has even started a new line of NrGize Lifestyle Yogurt Smoothies and Tart & Tangy nonfat frozen yogurt that has the probiotics, which can survive the freezing process.

There are smoothies with probiotics from Stonyfield Farm, Healthy Dairy, Dannon, and Satiety Smoothies. All the different kinds of fermented milk contain probiotics. Finger Lakes Dexter Creamery has a kefir cheese; "Dexter" refers to the breed of cattle used on the farm. This is a raw milk cheese made with kefir grains, and aged for at least 60 days. The probiotic count is known to be very high and it survives the aging process just fine. Even Silk products have probiotics.

Aside from dairy products, there are granola bars, cereals and other probiotic foods. Attune Foods has a few different flavors out for wellness bars and granola bars with "five times the live active cultures in yogurt". Lifeway Foods has introduced probiotic-containing Kefir Wellness snack bars. Kashi has granola bars with probiotics; they also have a cereal out with probiotics. Nestle Nutrition Good Start Natural Cultures is an infant formula that contains Bifidus BL which are beneficial cultures like those found in breast milk that help support the baby's immune system. There are even unpasteurized, fermented vegetables that have probiotics such as Cortland Valley Organic Sauerkraut from Great Lakes Kraut.

The company Real Pickles produces Organic Dill Pickles and Asian Style Cabbage that are unpasteurized, fermented foods with probiotics. Miso is a fermented seasoning paste of soybeans, usually with rice or barley added, and is used to flavor soups and sauces, it also contains probiotics. You can also find probiotics in supplement form that is either in capsules or tablets.