Are Probiotics Considered a Supplement?

Numerous foods now contain probiotic microorganisms because of the widespread belief that they improve health. The market value of probiotic supplements has been skyrocketing in recent years due to their increasing popularity. Probiotic supplements provide the highest concentration of probiotics among all functional foods, with billions of diverse populations per serving. They frequently transport antibiotic-resistant determinants that, if acquired by opportunistic infections, could be spread to and accumulated in the gut's resident bacteria. However, whereas the benefits of probiotics to health have received a lot of attention, this risk has received comparatively less. But the human digestive system creates an environment that is hostile to bacteria, probiotics included. Supplemental probiotics may lose some of their health benefits if they are destroyed by stomach acids and bile salts1.

With all the new information available regarding probiotics and the long list of health advantages they provide, it's natural to have the same old question: what are they, anyway? An often-asked question is, "Are probiotics considered a supplement?"

The quick answer is "kind of" to this question. That's because taking a probiotic supplement every day is among the most common methods of ingesting these beneficial bacteria. However, supplements aren't the only option.

Why Probiotics Aren't Like Other Supplements2?

Nutritional supplements containing lactic acid bacteria, such as Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium, Leuconostoc, and Streptococcus, are often referred to simply as "probiotics."

Supplement powders like this are essentially chosen and cultivated in a laboratory; while dairy is the most popular source, vegan and soil-based options are also available. The premise is that with a concentrated powder, inoculation of the intestines is easier, and several strains can be used.

Products claiming to be dietary supplements containing probiotics are subject to stringent scientific requirements for testing and must disclose the strain's genus, species, and strain level. Colony-forming units (CFUs) are a unit of measurement used to describe the amount of a supplement's active ingredient per dose. This unit can range from 5 billion CFUs to 100 billion CFUs.

Probiotic supplementation is a rapidly growing industry that has emerged in the previous several decades. Therefore, many companies would profit substantially from government-funded or privately-sponsored studies on the effects of various lab-produced strains on human health and gut flora.

Therefore, until yet, there is significantly less research on probiotic dietary sources compared to supplement items.

Guide to Probiotic Supplements3-4:

If you're looking to buy a probiotic brand, here are some things to look for.

  1. A high colony-forming unit (CFU), which is expressed in billions. Typically, a range of 20-50 billion CFU per serving is sufficient. A total of this many viable microorganisms was found in the initial analysis. Because this number can drop during storage, it's important to have a higher CFU count to make up for any loss in quality.
  2. It's commonly held that products that don't need to be refrigerated, such as those that can be stored at room temperature, are superior. Probiotic capsules with a storage life of less than two years are not ideal. Products that can sit on a shelf without refrigeration nonetheless benefit from being stored in a cool environment like a fridge or freezer.
  3. If you take a probiotic supplement in powder form, your stomach acid may neutralise it before it reaches your colon. Consequently, some products feature a delivery method designed to preserve the beneficial bacteria.
  4. Supplements derived from the soil-based organisms present on raw vegetables and fruits are called "soil-based organisms" (SBOs). Some medical professionals hold the opinion that these organisms are more able to colonise the digestive system because they are more robust.
  5. Quality products should include multiple strains of beneficial bacteria like Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium because of the wide variety of bacteria found in the gut microbiome. Various species of strains have been linked to particular diseases.
  6. Supplement formulations that incorporate prebiotics are common because they serve as "food" for probiotic organisms, increasing their growth, survival, and implantation. Prebiotics are often forms of soluble plant fibre that cannot be digested by humans. 

Reference:

  1. Wang, Y. et al. Probiotic Supplements: Hope or Hype? Frontiers in Microbiology 11, (2020).
  2. What Are Probiotic Supplements & Is There Evidence Behind Them? Learn more.
  3. What are Probiotics? Supplements Vs Probiotic Foods. Learn more.
  4. Blackburn, K. B. Should you take a daily probiotic supplement? MD Anderson Cancer Center Learn more.