PROBIOTICS OR PREBIOTICS – WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE?

Increasing your gut’s ‘good’ bacteria may help after a course of antibiotics

QI have had to have a few courses of antibiotics recently as I have been unwell and ended up in hospital on a drip of antibiotics. I am thankfully much better now, but I’m wondering if the antibiotics have done any damage to my body and what I can do to help? Should I be taking probiotics or prebiotics and what actually is the difference between them?

AAntibiotics can be lifesaving and it sounds like you have had a difficult time being unwell with infections. Like any medication there can be side ef fects or risks with antibiotics and commonly patients may develop thrush, or an upset tummy with antibiotics. This is because antibiotics do not just travel to the area where the infection is and kill those bacteria. Instead, while they do hopefully treat the infection, they may also disrupt the natural balance of bacteria in the body. We all have millions of bacteria, on our skin and in our gut, and the impor tance of a healthy gut microbiome is still being investigated. We know for example that the gut and brain are connected and that the bacteria in your gastrointestinal system are involved in this. Having a healthy gut microbiome is impor tant and that is where pre and probiotics may

Antibiotics can disrupt the natural balance of bacteria

come in. Probiotics are live bacteria taken as supplements or added to foods with the aim of increasing the “good” bacteria in your gut. There is evidence that they can help with antibiotic induced diarrhoea and with par ticular gastrointestinal conditions. However, they are often promoted as helping lots of other conditions without evidence for it, and there is also a difference between probiotics sold in foods and pharmaceutical grade probiotics. Prebiotics on the other hand, are foods which help the good bacteria in your gut flourish. These are generally healthy choices like fruit and veg, as well as fermented foods, and may help. If you are concerned that you are having symptoms after a course of antibiotics then please see your doctor.