Antibiotics is the general go-to treatment for when you get sick with some kind of virus or infection. However, what some people dont’ know, taking antibiotics are very harmful to the natural gut flora in the body.
Why is this a big deal, well there is good bacteria in the body which helps the body from a lot of things from the immune system to your metabolism, and our mood to just name a few.
So, when you take antibiotics not only dos it kill the bad bacteria that may be causing your infection or ailment, but i also kills all the good bacteria that you are beneficial.
It is very important if you find yourself having to take a round of anti-biotics to restore your gut-flora to bring your body back into balance. If you don’t it could cause problems of diferrent sorts down the line.
In this recent post from the Bulletproof website, they talk about the different ways to restore your good bacteria after you have had to take some antibiotics:
“How to Restore Gut Flora After Taking Antibiotics
- Sometimes, you have to take a course of antibiotics, and you want to restore gut health as quickly as possible.
- Antibiotics sweep through all the bacteria in their path, even the friendly ones that help you digest your food and protect your intestinal membranes.
- There are things you can do while you’re taking antibiotics and after, like cutting sugar, drinking bone broth, taking collagen, taking specific strains of probiotics, and more.
- Read on to find out how to bounce back from antibiotics as soon as possible.
There was no way around it. For one reason or another, you had to take a course of antibiotics, and now you’re worried about the aftermath of the attack on your gut flora.
Back in the day, doctors used to think that a healthy body is a sterile body, and that our immune systems are constantly fighting the microbes you come into contact with.
Now, the medical community understands that there’s a whole separate world of living organisms within your intestines, and keeping them balanced keeps you healthy. Colonies of beneficial bacteria in your digestive tract help you digest and absorb your food, they fight off germs that make you sick,[1] and they even make a large portion of your serotonin, which helps keep your moods level.[2]
How antibiotics impact gut health
Antibiotics kill off the bacteria responsible for the infection you’re targeting, as well as the friendly gut bacteria you’d rather leave alone. Best case, you have gas and diarrhea for a few days. Or, it can get so bad that the balance of your microbiome shifts, and you can end up with problems like:
- Malapsorption
- Acid reflux
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Brain fog
- Acne
- Autoimmune diseases
- Candida (yeast) overgrowth and more
You don’t have to sit around and wait for your body to readjust. Read on to find out how to restore your gut flora and bounce back from antibiotics as quickly as possible.
Take probiotics to restore gut flora
Beneficial bacteria balance out microbes that slow you down. Every dose of antibiotics wipes out a large portion of bacteria in your entire system, including the good guys. After that, the good microbes and the unfriendly ones slowly rebuild, and if all goes well, they come back into balance. But, it takes time, and they don’t always colonize in balance. Sometimes, one or a few harmful strains takes over.
To keep the bad gut flora from winning, take probiotics while you’re taking antibiotics.[3][4] Friendly bacteria don’t have to colonize in the gut to help you through a course of antibiotics. If you time it right, bacteria that are just passing through will keep the bad bugs in check. Even though the next dose will wipe out a lot of them, some will survive, and if the good guys hold their own, you’ll be in better shape when they build back up.
Make sure to take your probiotics at least two hours away from antibiotic doses in either direction. Also, watch for histamine-producing strains if you’re sensitive. More on the best types of probiotics here.
S. Boulardii is a beneficial yeast, not a bacteria, so antibiotics can’t touch it. In several studies, researchers found that s. Boulardii prevented antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD) when they administered it with antibiotics.[5][6][7][8]
Cut sugar while you’re on antibiotics, and after
Without bacteria to keep them at bay, fungi have the opportunity to get busy during a course of antibiotics. You can attribute a lot of the problems that you experience after antibiotics — diarrhea, infections down there — to fungal overgrowth, particularly yeast. One problematic strain of fungus is candida albicans, which is especially prone to going haywire after antibiotics.[9]
Candida thrive on sugar and simple carbohydrates (like bread and pasta) that your body quickly turns into sugar. Candida will flourish if bacteria aren’t there to fight back, and it will get sugar from the food you eat. To keep it from taking over, keep your sugar and carb intake to a minimum. They won’t get very far if they don’t have a substantial food source. Staying away from sugar is always good advice, but it’s especially crucial when you’re taking antibiotics.”
The rest of the article continues with some good suggestions on things you can continue to deal such as consuming bone broth or collagen, staying away from certain types of starch, and increasing your veggies in your diet.
To finish reading the rest of this post, go on over to the webssite over at blog.bulletproof.com.
Photo By Mrs Daisy