Joining us today is Jane Jansen, a Natural & Holistic Practitioner at The Tree of Life Wellness Center in Massachusetts. Jane has the unique perspective as a medical professional who, prior to becoming a natural & holistic practitioner, spent years in Radiology and Ultrasound doing research and performing tests on patients with varying types of health problems. Jane joins us today to discuss why probiotics are important at all stages of our lives.

Our ancestors tended not to have modern-day 21st Century digestive issues because they ingested naturally fermented foods that, as we know today, produced probiotics & postbiotics. The challenge in today’s “fast-food & processed food” world is that we do not eat a lot of naturally fermented foods like our ancestors.

Our ancestors, from early times to the early 1900’s, ingested more fruits and vegetables, as well as other natural foods that had fermented overtime preserving their food supply. For instance, milk could become yogurt or buttermilk; vegetables could become sauerkraut, pickles, or kimchee. Soybeans could become miso, tofu, or tempeh. By-the-way, we can still use these foods to incorporate probiotics from food naturally into our diets.

But our modern food industry is largely based on a fast-food culture and processed foods which are lacking in healthful fermentation of fruits and vegetables which naturally produce probiotics and more importantly, postbiotics. Postbiotic metabolites is the term that refers to the wide range of health-regulating compounds that the good bacteria produce and secrete in the intestinal tract (primarily in the colon) when they digest and ferment the fiber content in the foods we eat.

 Everyone is born with a miniature microbiome (eco system) inside the intestines. This ecosystem is populated by trillions of microscopic organisms which include over a thousand species of bacteria, as well as viruses, fungi, and parasites. Most are good, some are bad.

As you grow, your gut microbiome begins to diversify into many different types of microbial species. This eco system affects the whole body by controlling the digestion of food, immune system regulation, central nervous system, brain health and other bodily functions as well as keeping guard against harmful invaders.

Dr. Ohhira’s Probiotics are available at Natural Grocers, Sprouts, and other natural health retailers across the U.S. Also available online. Visit www.essential formulas.com to find a retailer near you.