- With surveys suggesting up to 74% of Americans
regularly deal with gastrointestinal related
issues or symptoms,
it's not surprising that so many people
have started taking digestive enzymes
and probiotic supplements
in their search for better gut health.
But which one should you be taking,
the red pill or the blue pill? (chuckles)
I mean, digestive enzymes or probiotics?
Well in this video,
we'll take a closer look at both of them
including what they do,
how they can help your gut health,
and who they are best suited for.
(lively music)
Hi, I'm registered dietitian, Richelle Godwin.
And just before we get started,
did you know that us humans
have been fascinated by bacteria
since as far back as the 1600s?
In fact, it was around this time that famous scientists
like Antonie van Leeuwenhoek
first viewed bacteria under a microscope.
But despite their pioneering discoveries,
Antonie and other leaders of microbiology
viewed bacteria as mainly disruptive and disease-causing.
And so if you had asked them which is better,
probiotics being bacteria or digestive enzymes (chuckling)
they would have been Team Enzymes all the way.
Fast-forward to the 21st century though
and we've learned a lot.
In the fact, in the past two decades or so,
we have truly begun to understand
how much we need bacteria,
especially in our guts,
and just how poorly we can feel
when we don't have adequate amounts and diversity of them.
But, of course, that's just one aspect of gut health.
We also have to worry about
how well we digest and absorb the food we eat. (chuckling)
So with that history lesson out of the way,
let's first look at, what are probiotics?
Well, you probably already know
that they are healthy bacteria
that can benefit us humans in some way.
But did you know,
the name probiotic actually means for life
which is such a befitting name
for these little bacteria buddies of ours.
Now, here's a really cool thing.
Inside your gut right now,
there is a five foot-long tube
known as the large intestine or colon.
And guess what?
It can house upwards of 100 trillion bacteria,
or microbes to use the technical term.
And they come from thousands of different species
ranging from beneficial,
to neutral,
to potentially harmful.
Together they make up
what is called your microbiome.
And you can think of it
like an entire rainforest inside your gut.
So now you know that.
I bet you're wondering,
what does a healthy microbiome look like?
In other words, how can we make sure
the 100 trillion bacteria buddies living inside of us
help our gut instead of hindering them?
Well, just as a healthy rainforest requires
diverse plant and animal life to flourish and thrive,
your microbiome also needs a wide variety
of bacteria, yeast, and fungal species to remain in balance.
And to give you an idea of just how important this is,
I wanted to share a quote
from this 2020 paper we recently read
in the "Digestive Diseases" journal.
So the researchers wrote, and I quote,
"This diversity allows humans
to obtain a variety of benefits,
such as digesting various foods, especially fiber,
producing vitamins and other protective metabolites,
activating homeostatic gut and systemic immune responses
and preventing colonization by pathogens," unquote.
And if you don't speak fluent geek
like our research team at Essential Stacks,
to summarize what they are saying is,
a diverse microbiome can help
your digestion,
nutrient absorption,
immune system
and even protect you
from dangerous bacteria and yeast.
Not only that, but a well-balanced microbiome
has also been linked to better mood,
skin, cognition, and metabolism.
But what happens if your microbiome is unhealthy?
Well, when there is an imbalance
of good and bad bacteria in our gut,
dysbiosis can develop
which is just a fancy way of saying our microbial community,
the rainforest within us is out of whack.
And this is a problem because it can then
cause many digestive problems
like bloating, constipation,
and, of course, diarrhea.
So repopulating your gut microbiome
with beneficial bacteria,
in other words, probiotics,
can help to bring things back into balance.
And in terms of how we can consume more probiotics,
well there are three great options you can try.
The first would be to rebuild
the bacterial rainforest in your gut by consuming
probiotic-rich fermented foods
like sauerkraut and kimchi.
And if you wanna learn about them,
check out the videos we recorded
for our fermented food series.
Links in the description below.
Of course, not everyone loves the taste of these.
So the next best option you can try
are fermented drinks
like kefir and kombucha.
Most people find these much easier to consume
and often end up loving the taste.
And if you wanna learn about
how to make these fermented foods,
check out the videos in the description below.
And finally, if you find probiotic foods and drinks
a bit of a challenge to consume regularly enough
to support your microbiome,
then you can always try a probiotic supplement.
Here at Essential Stacks, we make this.
And since I don't wanna turn this
into an infomercial for our probiotics,
I'll just say this,
picking a good probiotic supplement is tough.
Most don't deliver enough bacteria
or from a diverse enough range of strains.
So if you wanna learn what to look for
in a probiotic supplement,
check out our Buyer's Guide to Probiotics video.
And the link for this is also in the description below.
Now you know what probiotics are,
why they're important,
and just how silly our old Dutch scientist friend
Antonie was when he thought bacteria were bad.
Silly Dutch man. (chuckling)
Let's take a look at what digestive enzymes are
and why they're important.
So I guess the first big thing to say is that,
although probiotics are undoubtedly beneficial,
sometimes the problem with our gut health
isn't due to an imbalanced microbiome.
Instead, sometimes the issue arises
earlier in the digestive tract,
like in the stomach or small intestine.
In other words, we have a problem
digesting our food properly.
And in these cases,
digestive enzymes are a lot more important.
So to set the scene for you,
it's important to know that our bodies
naturally and constantly produce enzymes
that help break down the food we eat
into smaller building blocks
that our cells can use for energy.
For obvious reasons, a huge steak can't just lie down
in the digestive tract in its entirety.
Instead, we've gotta break it down first in multiple ways.
And one of the key ways for doing this is with enzymes.
But this natural enzyme production
can decline due to age,
an unhealthy diet,
stress,
and a variety of other health issues.
And if we are not making enough enzymes,
then our bodies really struggle
to completely break down the food we eat.
And this in turn can cause uncomfortable digestive symptoms.
Hello bloating, gas, and reflux!
And in these cases,
you might take a digestive enzyme supplement
like this, for example.
In other words, you would send down
more of the good guys to help with food breakdown.
And that way, you can ensure
you don't end up like Bryan Cranston
storming out of the Tony's.
So in terms of which is better,
well, hopefully you can now see
that one is not necessarily better than the other.
Instead, it comes down
to what your digestive issues are
and whether foods are the key cause of them.
And so to wrap up this video,
let's take a quick look at when to choose which supplement.
So quite simply, probiotics can help
with a broader range of health concerns
than digestive enzymes.
And that's because your gut microbiome
can affect so many other parts of the body,
as we saw earlier in the video.
Supplemental probiotics have been found
to help with many issues including
irritable bowel syndrome and constipation
as well as other common GI issues
like leaky gut, SIBO, and diarrhea.
Probiotics are even thought to potentially benefit
non-digestive issues
like depression, acne, and allergies.
So now in terms of when you should choose digestive enzymes,
well these are a better choice
when most of your issues come from eating.
You see, although probiotics
can help digest fiber-rich foods,
that's about it.
By contrast, a digestive enzyme supplement
with a wide variety of different enzymes
can help you digest everything,
from protein to fats,
and, of course, carbs and fiber.
With that said, something like our Pure Enzyme supplement,
which is a multi-enzyme formula,
is not for everyone.
You see, if you only find some specific foods
cause you a problem,
for example, dairy,
then you don't need an enzyme supplement
with so many different enzymes.
Instead, you would be fine
taking a single enzyme supplement.
For example,
lactase enzymes for lactose intolerance
or alpha-galactosidase enzymes for beans and legumes
or even peptidase DPP-IV for gluten intolerance.
And by contrast, if you get bloated
or experience other digestion issues randomly,
meaning you can't pinpoint a specific food,
well then a broad-spectrum digestive enzyme supplement
like Pure Enzymes,
may be your best bet.
And to wrap up our video,
what happens if you take both probiotics and enzymes?
(chuckling) Well the simple answer is,
you can, (chuckling)
as they don't interfere with each other
and offer complementary benefits.
However, we don't want you to go spending money
on supplements that aren't really necessary.
So it can be worth trialing out
each supplement separately
to see if one works better for you than the other.
For example, you can take a probiotic for four weeks
and keep an eye on your symptoms.
If they improve, you know probiotics by themselves
are probably good enough.
If not, go ahead and try adding digestive enzymes
into your routine.
Overall, the moral of the story is that
both probiotics and digestive enzyme supplements
can benefit different parts of your digestive system.
So to recap,
while enzymes help you break down food completely
to help with bloating, gas, and indigestion,
probiotics help repopulate your gut microbiome
to benefit both digestive and overall health.
Now we wanna hear from you,
what have you found works best for you?
Let everyone know by leaving a comment below.
If you enjoyed this video as part of our digestion series,
then hit the Like and Subscribe button
to make sure you never miss another video.
Our team of dietitians and doctors here at Essential Stacks
are so excited to continue researching
which foods and supplements help your gut health.
That way, you can save hundreds of hours of trial and error
and focus on what's best for your digestive health.
Thanks for watching,
and see you in the comments.
Bye for now.
(lively music)