Most people have had antibiotics at some time in their lives and while these are fantastic medicines that help you overcome infections; they can also kill the ‘good’ bacteria living in your body that you need for optimal health.

Your doctor or pharmacist may recommend a Probiotic to follow your antibiotic course to replace the ‘good bacteria’ and improve your gut flora. This is because probiotics are full of live bacteria and yeasts that improve your health and digestive system.

Even if you haven’t been on antibiotics your gut flora may be low because of poor diet, alcohol, intake, stress, ageing and poor food digestion.

Probiotics may be useful for conditions such as:

• Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
• Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)
• Infectious diarrhoea (caused by viruses, bacteria, or parasites)
• Antibiotic-related diarrhoea

Probiotics can also be found in some foods, like natural yoghurt and other dairy products. However, you often need to eat a lot of yoghurt to have a positive effect on your gut health.

There is also some research that shows probiotics are useful for problems in other parts of your body. For example, there is evidence to suggest that probiotics help with:

• Skin conditions, like eczema
• Urinary and vaginal health
• Prevention of allergies and colds
• Oral health

If you want to find out more about probiotics, pop in to your local Capital Chemist and speak to one of our friendly and knowledgeable pharmacists.