Ask the hearing expert CHRIS CHILDE
Although there are lots of different types of yogurt on the market, not all of them contain beneficial gut bacteria. “Look out for cartons with labels that say they contain live cultures,” says Megan. “It doesn’t really matter if they’re full fat or made from skimmed milk. Although full-fat yogurts have been shown to protect the bacteria from stomach acid and may have the edge in that way, that’s a mechanistic benefit rather than any superiority of the bacteria in the yogurt.’
Take a probiotic only if you’re taking antibiotics or have IBS. There isn’t any evidence that taking a probiotic supplement offers health benefits to healthy people, but there are studies that show specific strains of bacteria can help treat certain conditions.
“If you’re taking antibiotics, one strain of yeast called saccharomyces boulardii, taken at a dose of 10 billion colonyforming-units (CFUs) twice daily, can reduce diarrhoea by 50 per cent, which affects around 30 per cent of people taking antibiotics,” says Megan. “You’d need to take these supplements throughout the course of your treatment and for a few days afterwards for them to be effective.
“When it comes to IBS, there are four probiotic supplement products on the market that have been shown in a study to be effective in treating symptoms: Symprove, Alflorex, Bio-Kult and VSL#3.
“I wouldn’t go as far as to say that these would work for everybody with IBS, however, as this evidence comes from a single study. When researchers have pooled the results of all studies together, they’ve found that probiotics reduce
IBS symptoms by 20 per cent.”
When it comes to a good gut diet, variety is key. “If you eat rice a lot, try wild rice, quinoa or buckwheat,” says Megan.
“Even eating yellow and green peppers as well as red will help.
“If you’re buying chickpeas, why not get a can of four bean salad instead and try butter beans, red kidney beans and black beans, too? Likewise, with pasta, try wholewheat or lentil versions.”
Eat like a Mediterranean-dweller to boost your mood. “This is an emerging area,” says Megan, “but we’ve seen in some studies that eating a high-fibre Mediterranean-style diet of fruit, vegetables, legumes, extra-virgin olive oil and wholegrains can improve depression in some people. “That’s not to say that people on medication should stop taking their pills – rather, that eating a high-fibre Med diet alongside taking their medication may improve their mood.”
If you suffer from IBS symptoms such as bloating, wind and diarrhoea, you may be tempted to try the low-FODMAP diet.
“It involves avoiding a type of poorly absorbed carbohydrate found in foods such as onions, garlic, lentils, brassicas, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli and wheat.
However, it shouldn’t be undertaken without the supervision of a registered dietitian, warns Megan.
“Many FODMAPs are essentially prebiotics, so by cutting them out you could be starving your gut bacteria of food. Also, the diet is very complex and should only be followed for four to six weeks. “After that, FODMAPs should be systematically reintroduced with the help of a dietitian so you can identify what your tolerance is.” “The ramifications of the trend for eating a low-carb diet without a medical recommendation are worrying because fibre is a type of carbohydrate,” says Megan.
“In the short term you can lose weight. However you can also damage your gut bacteria, which may in the long run have consequences such as an increased risk of colon cancer.”
● The Gut Health Doctor (Penguin Life, £16.99) is out in September. You can pre-order from Amazon. Follow Megan on Instagram @theguthealthdoctor or go to theguthealthdoctor.com
● This feature is from February’s issue of Healthy Food Guide (in supermarkets and WHSmith). Go to healthyfood.co.uk for subscriptions.
Audiologist and Training Manager from Amplifon, the Global Hearing Specialist, has the answers to your questions
Tinnitus is an awareness of sound in the ears or head which is not from an external source. There are many different types of tinnitus sounds, including a hiss, whistle, whirring or a buzz.
Does having tinnitus mean I have a hearing loss?
In most instances it can often be that tinnitus is an underlying symptom of hearing loss, caused by exposure to noise over a period of time, medication, or even simply the aging process. However it is also possible to have tinnitus without having hearing loss. If you are exposed to sudden loud noise, such as a rock concert or an explosion, you might experience temporary ringing in the ears. If you think you have hearing loss or for advice on how best to manage your tinnitus, book in with your local Amplifon Audiologist in the first instance. Patients with hearing loss and tinnitus may find relief from the use of hearing aids. With the hearing aids in, your organ of hearing and brain is receiving more stimulation from environmental sounds and speech. The ability to hear more natural environmental sounds can often provide a “masking” effect for the tinnitus. It allows the hearing aid wearer to hear what they need and can, on many occasions, help to alleviate the tinnitus.
Do some of the newer hearing aids have a tinnitus function?
Yes, with the rapid advancement of new hearing aid technology many of the manufacturers we work with have a specialised tinnitus function. This works by digitally setting up a certain masking noise which your Amplifon Audiologist would match closely to the pitch of your tinnitus to help alleviate the noise.
In many of the hearing aids you can control the pitch and volume of this feature by adjusting the aid itself, by remote control or now even on a special tinnitus app on your smartphone.
At its 200 centres across the UK, Amplifon offers free hearing tests as well as free trials of appropriate hearing aids. Chris would love to answer your hearing-related questions – email him at amplifon@express.co.uk