- With Mayo Clinic nutritionist
Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.
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Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.
Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.
As a specialty editor for the Food & Nutrition Center, Katherine Zeratsky helps you sort through the facts and figures, the fads and the hype to learn more about nutrition and diet.
A Marinette, Wis., native, she is certified in dietetics by the state of Minnesota and the American Dietetic Association. She has been with Mayo Clinic since 1999.
She is active in nutrition-related curriculum and course development in pediatrics at Mayo Clinic Rochester and nutrition education related to the physiology and recommended intakes for premature infants.
Other areas of interest include breast milk and formula safety, neonatal feeding, and nutrition for breast-feeding mothers.
She graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, served a dietetic internship at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, and worked as a registered dietitian and health risk counselor at ThedaCare of Appleton, Wis., before joining the Mayo Clinic staff.
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Question
Probiotics: Important for a healthy diet?
Is it important to include probiotics in a healthy diet?
Answer
from Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D.
You don't necessarily need probiotics — foods or supplements that contain "good" bacteria — to be healthy. However, these microorganisms may help with digestion and offer protection from harmful bacteria, just as the existing "good" bacteria in your body already do.
You can add probiotics to your diet through nutritional supplements or foods such as yogurt, fermented and unfermented milk, miso, and some juices and soy drinks. Read product labels carefully, looking for a statement that the product contains "live and active cultures," such as lactobacillus.
Although more research is needed, there's encouraging evidence that probiotics may help:
- Treat diarrhea, especially following treatment with certain antibiotics
- Prevent and treat vaginal yeast infections and urinary tract infections
- Treat irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
- Reduce bladder cancer recurrence
- Speed treatment of certain intestinal infections
- Prevent and treat eczema in children
- Prevent or reduce the severity of colds and flu
Some researchers believe probiotics may improve general health. In a small Swedish study, for instance, a group of employees who were given the probiotic Lactobacillus reuteri missed less work due to respiratory or gastrointestinal illness than did employees who were not given the probiotic.
Most people can safely add probiotic foods to a healthy diet. If you're considering taking probiotic supplements, check with your doctor to make sure the supplements are right for you.
Next questionNatural aphrodisiacs: Do they work?
- An introduction to probiotics. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. http://nccam.nih.gov/health/probiotics. Accessed Jan. 18, 2010.
- Tubelius P, et al. Increasing work-place healthiness with the probiotic Lactobacillus reuteri: A randomised, double-blind placebo-controlled study. Environmental Health. 2005;4:25.
- Guarino A, et al. Probiotics as prevention and treatment for diarrhea. Current Opinion in Gastroenterology. 2009;25:18.
- Kligler B, et al. Probiotics. American Family Physician. 2008;78:1073.
- Sartor RB. Probiotics for gastrointestinal diseases. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Feb. 4, 2010.
- Leyer GJ, et al. Probiotic effects on cold and influenza-like symptom incidence and duration in children. Pediatrics. 2009;124:e172.
- Vouloumanou EK, et al. Probiotics for the prevention of respiratory tract infections: A systematic review. International Journal of Antimicrobial Agents. 2009;34:197.e1.
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