The body naturally contains some micro-organisms, including bacteria, which do not cause any infections. Instead these lifeforms can play a role in keeping the body healthy. Supplements that increase the number of these micro-organisms are known as probiotics. Probiotics are especially helpful after you take a course of antibiotics.
Probiotic Identification
Probiotics are a blanket term for any micro-organism that can provide health benefits if taken in sufficient quantities, according to the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Most probiotics are bacteria, such as Lactobacillus acidophilus. The acidophilus bacteria are similar to the bacteria that are normally found in the digestive tract, and they play an important role in digestion and in regulating the immune system. You can get probiotics via supplements or by consuming some foods, such as yogurt or fermented tempeh, which naturally have these beneficial organisms.
Probiotics and Antibiotics
One reason you may take probiotics is if you have just finished a course of antibiotics. When you take antibiotics, the drug kills bacteria throughout your body, including the beneficial bacteria that live in your intestines. When this happens, it opens up the intestines and other parts of your body to be colonized with infectious bacteria that would normally be crowded out by the natural or "healthy" bacteria. This can result in diarrhea after you take a course of antibiotics. Probiotics are able to help prevent this diarrhea, the Mayo Clinic notes.
Instructions
Probiotic supplements are often measured in terms of colony-forming units, or CFUs. If you are trying to prevent diarrhea or other health problems after a course of antibiotics, you should take 1 to 2 billion CFUs each day, the University of Maryland Medical Center states. If you are taking probiotics at the same time as antibiotics, you should wait two to three hours after taking the antibiotic to take the probiotic supplement so that the beneficial bacteria can survive the antibiotic treatment.
Precautions
Talk with your doctor before taking any sort of supplement to make sure that it is safe for you to use. Probiotic supplements can cause intestinal bloating and gas, though these side effects usually subside after use for an extended period of time. In some cases, probiotic supplements can cause infections of the heart muscle. This is more common in people who have an artificial heart valve. You should also be wary of taking probiotics if you have a weakened immune system.
