Probiotics ARE the Real Deal. Our Response to a Recent CNN Report.
You may have read this past month on CNN that according to The American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) that there isn't enough evidence for probiotics to recommend taking them.” In one of thousands of recent investigations of probiotics, the AGA sought to determine the role of probiotics in treating gastrointestinal disorders. Like many other scientific studies, almost all of these findings are unveiled in the form of peer reviewed journal articles. However, because this medium can be difficult and time-consuming to digest, news sources pick up the stories, reword them, and republish them.
CNN did just so: it issued an article that trimmed a lengthy paper published in the AGA into fewer than thirty sentences, all while making a blanket judgement on the efficacy of probiotics as a whole. With this in mind, we wanted to provide more insights into this article titled “Probiotics don't do much for most people's gut health despite the hype”.
Let’s break it down, shall we?
The article cites the AGA as its primary evidence, yet this study was limited to the role of probiotics only in treating IBS, Crohn’s, C. diff infections, diarrhea, and gastroenteritis. However, what the CNN article fails to mention, the study states that some probiotic strains are successful in treating certain conditions. No evidence has been presented to support or disprove the use of probiotics in the benefiting other aspects of health and performance outside of the gastrointestinal system. Here are a few that we focus on:
· Improves Endurance
· Increases Energy
· Quickens Recovery Time
· Enhances Metabolism
· Increase Ability to Gain Muscle
· Reduces LDL (bad) Cholesterol
· Improves HDL (good) Cholesterol
· Boosts Oral Health
· Reduces Allergy Symptoms
· Improve the Immune System
And several research studies and articles that back-up these claims:
While we disagree with a number of the blanket claims this article makes surrounding the inefficacy of probiotics, there are a few claims that we agree with.
“Selecting an effective probiotic means matching the specific probiotic strain to the type of disease that needs treatment.”
At Craft Microbiome, we only use strains that have been deemed effective, not just generic strains that could boost your health. Our products are specialized to target a specific aspect of your health and performance, for example Craft Strength, which helps boost testosterone levels and increase muscle mass. If these focused probiotics aren’t specialized enough, you can craft your own probiotic with us. You can choose your bacteria strains and even the sources of those probiotics. No other company gives you this much agency in your probiotics.
"Not all probiotics are created equal. Some probiotic strains and mixtures are very effective for some types of diseases and should not be overlooked due to studies that lump all probiotics together as one.”
We can’t help but agree. Not only are our strains studied for efficacy, but we are constantly researching new strains and potential combinations. Additionally, all of our probiotics are manufactured in small batches as this provides you with fresh, newly isolated probiotics. All of our probiotics are genetically tested by a third-party company to ensure you know exactly what you are putting in your body, and it is off the highest quality. Check out our production article. We use probiotics that deliver results and come from quality sources. Here are just a few:
· Ivy League Athlete
· GQ Model
· HBS Graduate
· World Championship Rower
· World Championship Pentathlete
Probiotics are taken by millions of people daily and not just because of the hype. But, because of their success. Our customers are just a few of the many who have positively benefited their health and performance. We are determined to be on the forefront of probiotic use in athletes, and we continually adapt our products to support this goal.
So, before you accept the words of CNN, let’s remember that this mainstream article fails to summarize all the scientific findings in both its title and its text of the AMA, and that gastrointestinal health is just one piece of the vast puzzle that is probiotics. We at Craft Microbiome strive to provide you the most updated information and the most effective products, so you can unlock your full athletic potential.