Okay, so first, what is a probiotic? Well, per WebMD, “Probiotics are live bacteria and yeasts that are good for your health, especially your digestive system.” In a nutshell, they help with tummy health. When people talk about “good” bacteria, probiotics are what they are referring to.
Now, for a long time, I lived under the assumption that vitamins in general were unnecessary. Theoretically, a person should be able to get all the nutrients and vitamins they need from food.
Then I had an epiphany.
I don’t eat anything even close to a normal diet. Being a vegetarian, there are a lot of nutrients I’m sure I miss out on, namely iron. At any random point in time, I’m sure I’m iron deficient. And while I try to eat as well as I can, I’m kind of lazy when it comes to food. I would rather eat Oreos for dinner than take a Sunday doing all my food prep for the week. I tried meal prep. It stuck for about a month and then I started feeling like I was a slave to my food.
While I love the idea of meal planning services, such as Blue Apron, cost efficiency is not their biggest selling point. Since I’m working on a TV show and sustaining myself with background work, expensive stuff is not really an option.
Then there’s the fact that I have weird diet habits.
I’m usually called to set by 6:00 a.m., meaning I have to be up by 4:00. Being that tired makes me lose my appetite. I tend to skip lunch and try to keep my digestive system in a good mood while on set. Nothing is worse than having a stomach/intestinal problem when sharing a bathroom with 20 strangers.
So I’ve lost nine pounds since I’ve been working the last two weeks. I know this isn’t necessarily happy, but it was nine pounds that I had available to lose since I’ve gained about 15 in the last couple months.
I started talking to a new friend I met on set who takes probiotics, and she said she started taking them when she went off of birth control.
She had spoken to a doctor who said that the pill kills off the good bacteria in your gut, and pretty much, it never naturally grows back on its own. I’ve been on and off the pill for most of my adult life, and this information shocked me. I know there’s fine print to all medication, but this is something I really wish had been outlined specifically for me.
Anyway, the other morning I woke up with a bad case of what is fondly referred to as “bubble gut,” which is just as pleasant as it sounds. That day, I decided to run over to The Vitamin Shoppe and get myself a probiotic. My friend had recommended Dr. Mercola’s brand, so that’s what I chose
This was around a week ago, and I’ve been feeling amazing ever since. So what are the benefits of taking probiotics, other than the obvious?
Probiotics can boost your immune system.
By increasing levels of lymphocytes, which are a marker of immune response, probiotics help with immune health. This is one of the main functions of a probiotic.
Probiotics can improve digestive function.
I feel like this is a “no duh” one, given everything I’ve just said, but probiotics help with digestive function. Research has shown that probiotics can help people with irritable bowel syndrome and a range of intestinal problems, such as abdominal pain, bloating, constipation, cramps, and diarrhea.
Probiotics can help with urinary tract health.
This is another big one for me. I’ve been plagued for most of my adult life with urinary tract infections, and let me tell you, they are no picnic. To be honest, they’re bloody awful. So anything I can do to help keep my UT happy is okay by me.
Probiotics can help with allergies.
The official jury is still out on this one, but some studies have shown that pregnant women who take probiotics while the child is in vitro increase the infant’s level of tissue inflammation, which is believed to trigger the immune system and reduce allergy instance. I know, that sentence was confusing. I had to read the article a couple of times myself, but apparently tissue inflammation, in this case, is a good thing.
Probiotics can help fight obesity.
I mean, they aren’t like a miracle cure or anything. But one study showed that in a group of women trying to lose abdominal fat after having a baby, taking probiotic capsules helped reduce waist circumference.
Personally, probiotics just make me feel better overall. I like feeling as though I have some sort of control over my health other than just taking medication when I feel ill. Taking vitamins makes me feel proactive and a little more in control in a totally out of control world. I mean, at least a little bit.
The chaos.
I feel it should be known that as I sit and write this, Paranormal Activity 4 is on in the background. In honor of Halloween, I stream creepy movies a lot. But not too creepy. The PA franchise is just my right level of creep. The movies have to be suspenseful enough to keep my interest, but not so scary that they ruin my life for a year (thanks, The Ring).
At one point on a day that I wasn’t feeling well I sat in bed, all day, and watched all the PA movies. This is my second or third time through. So I kind of know what’s coming? But not enough to spoil the movie because I don’t know them that well. And since I have to be up at 4:00 a.m. again tomorrow, I’m hoping I won’t scare myself into not being able to sleep tonight. That’s something that adults don’t tell you when you’re growing up, that you don’t necessarily outgrow irrational fears. Just another disappointment about adulthood.
When I was a kid, we lived in a house in the same town that my parents live in now, just a bit smaller.
The basement of that house creeped me out, and I’m convinced to that day that there was something strange about my closet.
What I didn’t know, however, because why would you tell a six year old this, was that my mother was creeped out by the basement, too. My mom shared this revelation with me recently, and I was stunned to find out that my parents weren’t just impervious to all seemingly irrational fears, LOL. But clearly, there was something going on with that house.
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What’s your favorite Halloween activity? Leave me a comment or message me here!
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