Written by

Insatiable appetite? Think of Bacteria!

10/18/2018| Gut Health, Kids Health, Well Being, Women's Health| Views: 3916

The hunger phenomenon and the numerous micro-organisms that make up the microbiota are two subjects that fascinate humans and that are in fact … intimately related! Today there is reason to believe that our eating habits are partly dictated by our intestinal flora. Conventional opinion often associates junk food and malnutrition to a simple lack of will1. The attempt to resist cravings for high fat and sweet foods is a daily struggle for many people1....

Read More

Written by

Bacteriotherapy at your fingertips

08/01/2018| Gut Health, Kids Health, Well Being, Women's Health| Views: 3689

Micro-organisms colonize different regions of the human body, from the skin to the oral and nasal cavities, to the digestive and urogenital systems. The vast majority of microbes reside in the intestinal tract1. This powerful system is home to a bacterial complex and dynamic population; a human microbiota exerting a significant influence on the health of the host2. The digestive tract represents one of the largest interfaces (an area of 250 to 400 square meters) between humans and their environment2....

Read More

Written by

Where do probiotics come from?

06/04/2018| Gut Health, Well Being| Views: 9315

A clear probiotic definition The probiotics market is booming and all the – often contradictory – information available can rapidly overwhelm consumers. Such a commercial wave should not deter you from navigating the ocean of probiotics, as long as you consider some key elements of their formulation. The term “probiotic” entails it’s a product that contains adequate doses of active bacteria that are beneficial to the health of the host1. Be careful not to confuse probiotics and prebiotics;...

Read More

Written by

Bacteria help people with diabetes!?

05/22/2018| Gut Health, Well Being| Views: 3866

The World Health Organization (WHO) predicts that non-insulin-dependent type 2 diabetes will become the seventh leading cause of death in 20301. This overwhelming prediction is due to the fact that these diabetics have an increased risk of developing cardiovascular diseases, the leading cause of death in the world2. Other serious consequences of type 2 diabetes include high blood sugar, insulin resistance, increased levels of bad cholesterol in the blood,...

Read More

Written by

Acne-prone skins, get your probiotics!

05/01/2018| Gut Health, Well Being, Women's Health| Views: 5330

Skin is the largest organ of the body. Needless to say, that this site that constantly exposed to physical, chemical, bacterial and fungal irritants1. The healthy human dermis can produce an army of antimicrobial substances that play an important role in the elimination of potential skin pathogens2. According to statistical data, up to 12% of women and 3% of adult men suffer from adult acne (the problem is generally more serious in men),...

Read More

Written by

When bacteria takes over: S.O.S. SIBO

04/25/2018| Gut Health, Well Being| Views: 3823

The “new” evil : Intestinal bacterial overgrowth Have you ever heard of SIBO (Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth)? Overcrowding in the small intestine affects up to 20% of healthy people. In normal times, the vast majority of bacteria are found in the large intestine, also known as the colon. Several factors are at work to prevent bacterial overgrowth in the small intestine: acidic gastric secretions that chase certain bacterial strains, peristaltic movements that prevent their adhesion to the intestinal mucosa,...

Read More

Written by

Spotlight on Prebiotics

04/17/2018| Gut Health, Well Being| Views: 3490

“The dependence of our gut microbiota on food makes it possible to modify this intestinal flora, to replace pathogenic bacteria with those that benefit us”. – Ilya Metchnikov, Nobel Laureate in Physiology or Medicine (1908) Prebiotics – precursors to probiotics So far, to the extent of our knowledge, we know that prebiotics are carbohydrates, which are called either fructo or oligo-saccharides. These molecules resist digestion in the small intestine and reach the large intestine where they are fermented by the bacterial microflora1....

Read More

Written by

Probiotics, the solution to obesity?

03/15/2018| Gut Health, Well Being| Views: 3769

In Quebec, the prevalence of obesity has doubled in the last 25 years1. According to the most recent statistics, one in five people in the province has clinical obesity1. This global scourge – and the associated comorbidities (such as diabetes and heart disease) – negatively impacts the quality of life of the affected people and their loved ones2. As a result, it is imperative to understand the risk factors underlying the metabolic syndrome,...

Read More

Written by

Probiotics: immune revolution

03/15/2018| Well Being| Views: 4914

” It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.” – Charles Darwin The human organism, despite all its complexity and resilience, is constantly at risk of infection. Our immune system is the line of defense against foreign pathogens that are ubiquitous in our environment. From birth, and even before (in the womb), the baby’s microbiota grows, reaching its peak of bacterial colonization after the first year of life....

Read More

Written by

Probiotic support during menopause

02/28/2018| Women's Health| Views: 5023

Menopause is usually between the ages of 48 and 55, although it can vary greatly from one woman to another1. In Québec, the end of the female reproductive period is on average 51 years old2. The period from 2 to 7 years before menopause, punctuated by irregular periods and several hormonal symptoms, is called perimenopause3. During this transition into menopause, the ovaries do not fertilize more eggs and no longer produce fertility hormones (such as estrogen and progesterone),...

Read More