When it comes to probiotics and their food, prebiotics, there are several useful resources. The International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics (ISAPP), an association of academic and industrial scientists, has a sole focus on probiotics and prebiotics and is the first place to look for the latest developments. They maintain a useful, up-to-date resource guide for both probiotics and prebiotics on their website: http://www.isapp.net/Probiotics-and-Prebiotics/Resources.
Additionally, their site links to a useful probiotics guide developed by Primary Care Network (a primary medical care educational organization): http://www.isapp.net/Portals/0/docs/News/merenstein%20sanders%20CME%20Probiotics.pdf. This guide describes the important considerations of strain and manufacturing source for probiotic products as well as the evidence for specific probiotics as applied to specific diseases. A recent guide was also developed for probiotics available in Canada (http://www.isapp.net/Portals/0/docs/clincial%20guide%20canada.pdf). These links and content information provide detailed background that you can use for working with your health professionals as you make self-care choices involving everything that goes into and on your body: food, prebiotics and probiotics, drugs, and consumer products.
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Below is a list of current and anticipated probiotics described in recent studies and reviews:
Akkermansia muciniphila
Bifidobacterium animalis
Bifidobacterium breve
Bifidobacterium infantis
Bifidobacterium longum
Enterococcus durans
Enterococcus faecalis
Faecalibacterium prausnitzii
Lactobacillus acidophilus
Lactobacillus amylovorus
Lactobacillus casei
Lactobacillus fermentum
Lactobacillus gasseri
Lactobacillus helveticus
Lactobacillus johnsonii
Lactobacillus kefiranofaciens
Lactobacillus paracasei
Lactobacillus plantarum, Note: one of few used for gut and also used in respiratory tract priming
Lactobacillus reuteri
Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG
Pediococcus pentosaceus
Saccharomyces boulardii
VSL#3 blend
You have probably heard the term “heart-healthy diet,” and the recommendations from government and private groups alike to consume a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains with a lower intake of meat and unhealthy fats than is presently consumed in many Western countries. The diet of the Mediterranean region serves as one model for a balance of these dietary components, as recommended by the Mayo Clinic. Other groups have published dietary suggestions aimed at supporting physiological systems, balance, and function. Examples of this would be the science-based recommendations of (1) Ronald Watson, a nutritional immunologist and professor at the University of Arizona and lead author of Nutrition in the Prevention and Treatment of Abdominal Obesity, (2) Tom Malterre, a nutritionist and coauthor of The Elimination Diet, and (3) Susan Prescott, a clinical immunologist and professor in the School of Paediatrics and Child Health, University of Western Australia, author of Origins: Early-Life Solutions to the Modern Health Crisis. Other groups such as the Neurological Health Foundation have published dietary recommendations for general physiology or focused on the brain and neurological systems. Unquestionably, poor diets can contribute to microbial dysbiosis and NCDs, while well-balanced healthy diets can support a well-balanced microbiome and health.