The Amazing Health and beauty Benefits of a Probiotic Yeast

The Amazing Health and beauty Benefits of a Probiotic Yeast

Florastor is a probiotic which can be taken to create or maintain intestinal health and beauty.  A healthy digestive tract means better absorption of the nutrients necessary for normal and optimal functioning, and also involves fending off disease pathogens.  Probiotics are microorganisms that live in our intestines and offer health and beauty benefits.  Usually probiotics are beneficial bacteria, which are naturally occurring in the intestinal tracts of healthy mammals.  We actually have twenty times the amount of bacteria in our bodies as we do cells, and these bacteria are crucial not only to proper functioning, but to survival.  In the lower intestine, we need to have at least about 85% beneficial bacteria to stave off harmful bacteria like salmonella and E.coli, which are present but kept at safe levels by the "good" bacteria.  A proper balance of beneficial vs.

harmful bacteria is crucial for good health and beauty, which is where probiotic supplements come in.  The function of probiotics becomes more clear when you consider the meaning of the word, which is literally "for life".

he Health and Beauty Benefits of Probiotic Yeast Vs. Bacteria

Florastor is unique because it is a yeast rather than a bacteria.  While most people recognize that yeast is a fungus, they will probably be hard pressed to tell you how a yeast interacts with the body differently than a bacteria, with the exception of the yeast in yeast infections which is rather self explanatory.  The thing to know is that beneficial yeast, as in the case of Florastor probiotic yeast, actually offers a whole host of benefits to the, erm, host, meaning the human who uses Florastor.  The specific strain of yeast used in Florastor is saccharomyces boulardii.  One of the greatest benefits of the yeast is that it can survive our gastric acids, the same ones that can cause us to gripe and moan if it goes where it shouldn't and causes heartburn.  Making it past the acids allows the yeast to reach the intestines and colon where it does its work.  The yeast is also much larger than bacteria with ten times the surface area, which allows more pathogens to adhere to it.  And once the pathogens are stuck, the yeast doesn't hang around like bacteria usually do- it's gone from the body in a matter of days, carrying the pathogenic bacteria out of the body with it.  For patients fighting a bacterial infection with anti-bacterial medication, the yeast will work without being affected unlike beneficial bacteira which are also killed by medicine targeting harmful bacteira- that's one of the reasons antibacterial medicine should be used extremely sparingly and only in cases where it's absolutely necessary.  Florastor yeast even increase the immune response of the intestines by stimulating release of lgA, something that bacteria do not do.  Perhaps most importantly, Florastor yeast neutralizes enterotoxins, which are protein toxins created by microorganisms in the intestines.  This can be instrumental in halting diarrhea, and is again something that bacteria are unable to do.

The Health Benefits of Florastor

So now you know a little something about Florastor probiotics and the benefits it can offer for your intestinal tract, and therefore you.  But how, specifically, can it benefit you besides helping to create general good health (you have to admit, that's a pretty good benefit)?  One way is for travellers- Florastor has been shown to "signiicantly reduce the incidence of traveller's diarrhea", according to Travel Med Int.  It offers anti-toxini, anti-microbial, enzymatic activity, and immune enhancement to stave off diarrhea causing bacteria, viruses, and protozoa- including giardia, which can be extremely debilitating and life threatening if proper treatment isn't available. As one who has travelled quite extensively and experienced the hardships brought on by traveller's diarrhea, I wish I had known about Florastor earlier on!  It would have saved me a few painful hours in the toilet of a certain hostel in Turkey.  Besides acute infectious diarrhea of the sort that most often afflicts travellers and those who have eaten contaminated food, Florastor is also used in treatment of antibacterial associated diarrhea, including Clostridium difficile diarrhea which is caused by when all competing bacteira in the body has been wiped out by antibacterial medicine and the Clstridium bacteria takes over.  This is not a happy situation, but the Florastor yeast can help to get over it.  Finally, there is Florastor Kids for pediatric diarrhea, which has been shown in clinical studies to significantly outperform a placebo.  These come in Florastor 250 mg sachets which have a pleasant fruity flavor that can be sprinkled over food, so it should be a breeze to get your kid to eat it, even if he or she is suffering from a bad bout of diarrhea.

The Florastor probiotic yeast comes in lyophilized form, meaning it is freeze-dried.  Florastor side effects are limited to flatulence and thist in some patients, which isn't really a big deal if you think about it, especially if it is helping your intestinal tract stay healthy.  Florastor dosage is 1 capsule twice a day for both adults and children over one year old, and like Florastor for kids, capsules can be opened and sprinkled on food rather than taken in capsule form.  It's interesting to note the origins of Florastor- the saccharomyces boulardii Florastor yeast was isolated by a Frenchman in the 1800s who observed natives in the tropics chewing on the skins of lychee and mangosteen in an attempt to treat their diarrhea.  So it's a natural product that has already seen long use among humans, and it's something that can be counted on to work for most of us.

Sea Vegetables and the Amazing Health and beauty Benefits

Sea Vegetables and the Amazing Health and beauty Benefits

Healthy Sea Vegetables

By eating sea vegetables your diet will provide you with the most extensive array of minerals found in any food. Sea vegetables possess virtually all the minerals present in the ocean which are the same minerals present in the human bloodstream. In fact, vegetables from the sea have been shown to have a higher concentration of nutrition than the foods grown on land.

The many vegetables from the sea have long been held to possess many powers to prevent diseases, lengthen the life span, and aid in beauty and general good health. These sea vegetables are also known as seaweed and marine algae.

Seaweed contains more calcium than milk, more protein than eggs, more iron than beef and many micronutrients.

They are loaded with potassium, which is necessary for maintaining healthy blood pressure levels. It is also said to detoxify our system of heavy metals, shrink goiters, dissolve cysts and tumors, aid in weight loss and reduce water retention.

They are an exceptionally potent source of iodine, vitamin K, the B-vitamin folate, and magnesium, as well as iron, calcium, the B-vitamins riboflavin and pantotheic acid, and plant compounds, lignans, that possess antioxidant activity.

There have been studies that have shown that high levels of lignans in the body can reduce the risk of prostate cancer, breast cancer, ovarian cancer, cardiovascular disease, and osteopororsis.

Just today I read that sea vegetables can help prevent baldness (see link). When I lived in Seoul, S. Korea, many kinds of sea vegetables were part of the Korean cuisine and I have to say I did not see bald men. Of course their diet is superior overall.

Seaweed belongs to four classes: brown, green, red, and blue-green. The most common types of seaweed are:
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Nori - most commonly known and used to wrap sushi. In addition to all the benefits listed above it is also very high in vitamin A and protein. In S. Korea it is known as gim and is often used to make gim bap which is a wrap similar to sushi. It is also called laver in Scotland and Wales and in Ireland it is known as sloke. It is a member of the red marine algae family.

Hijiki - in addition to the benefits listed above, it also contains the most calcium of all the sea vegetables. Comparing it to milk - 100 grams of dry weight milk has 100mg of calcium. The same dry weight of hijiki has 1400mg. It is a member of the brown marine algae family.

Kombu (Kelp) - also known as kombu seaweed, kombu cha, and kombu sea vegetables. It has been used in Irish, Chinese, and Japanese diets for hundreds of years. In addition to the many benefits listed, kombu is also used for balancing the thyroid. It is sun dried and packaged, often used in supplements, used in cooking, and as a thickening agent in ice cream. It is a member of the brown marine algae family.

Irish Moss - in addition to the many benefits listed it also supports the skin's natural moisture barrier and is said to be extremely good for skin problems such as eczema, psoriasis, sun burn, and rashes. Often used in a dried form in breads, fritters, soups, relishes. It is also often eaten as a snack food. I have snacked on this when I lived in S. Korea. It has been used as a food additive for hundred of years in Ireland and over 2,000 years in China. It is a member of the red marine algae family.

When Irish Moss is processed for American products, you will see it on food labels listed as carrageenan; by that time it has been processed with alkai and other chemicals.
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Dulse - is also known as dulse seaweed or dulse sea vegetables. In addition to all the other benefits listed above, organic dulse is known to naturally fight viral infections. It belongs to the red marine algae family.

Bladderwrack - has recently been studied by the University of California, both the Davis and Berkely campuses. It was concluded that Japanese women tend to have far few incidences of breast cancer than the average population. It has also been used to help women with abnormal menstrual cycling problems. The iodine benefits of bladderwrack were once used extensively to treat goiters. Additionally, it has been featured in weight loss supplements. It is a member of the brown marine algae family.

Sea vegetables are often sold dried and used to sprinkle over or add to foods when cooking. If you live anywhere near an Asian market you can find every kind of sea vegetable imaginable. And very inexpensively. You can also find seaweed products in health food stores at a higher price. As an alternative there are now many quality supplements on the market, sold both in health foods stores and on the internet.

When I lived in S. Korea, children often ate the small pack of gim/nori/laver just like children here eat potato chips. I have done the same thing. Seaweed soups, various sea vegetable dishes, and nori/gim are a regular part of Korean cuisine.

A diet rich in sea vegetables are said to prevent breast cancer, balance body PH, correct mineral deficiencies, support wellness, boost the immune system, is a natural metabolsim booster, and has anti-aging benefits.
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The Photo: In the photo included below, are the very clean waters off Jeju Island, S. Korea. There live the amazing women known as the famous 'haenyo' or women divers. The haenyo are women, often up to 80 years of age, who daily go into the waters to bring in fresh sea vegetables and seafood; they have done this for hundreds of years. I had the pleasure of traveling with Korean colleagues to Jeju Island and eating the fresh sea foods, sitting on the lava rocks, brought in by these amazing women. The haenyo can stay under water for 2 minutes and longer, and travel as deep as 20m (about 66 feet) without diving equipment.

There is a wealth of information on the intenet about sea vegetables, or seaweed. Some here on hub pages.

See links below for other healthy eating suggestions!
The Diet for Thinning Hair
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* The Diet for Thinning Hair
If you are experiencing thinning hair or hair loss, some changes in your diet can help. An underactive thyroid may be the cause and that can be rectified. Another cause is the heavy meat consumption in the...