Question: what is a probiotics ?

Katie Fala answered on 12 Nov 2019: last edited 12 Nov 2019 5:28 pm

Thanks for the questions zest42cup! Probiotics are live microbes, such as bacteria but also some fungi, that can be eaten and produce a health benefit when they are eaten in high enough quantities. They can come in different forms, like pills containing freeze-dried bacteria strains but also in fermented foods like cheese, yoghurt, kefir, kombucha, sauerkraut, kimchi etc. There can be a lot of hype and confusion around probiotics so lots of scientists, including some in my lab and research institute, are trying to study them in more depth and detail to determine whether or not the probiotic is actually impacting human health, and how. Let me know if you’d like to know any more about this!