A new study in mice revealed that probiotics could be beneficial for more than just your gut.
A growing body of research suggests that gut health can affect overall well-being.
A new study in mice says that a common probiotic could prevent liver damage. Large clinical trials are still needed to determine how probiotics could protect against liver damage.
The liver is our largest internal organ and performs more than 500 functions to keep us alive and healthy, but that doesn’t seem to stop us from subjecting it to regular abuse.
Beer, pizza late at night and taking a pain pill early in the morning wreak havoc on this vital organ. But new research offers a possible weapon against harm: probiotics .
You’ve probably heard of the link between probiotics and digestive health, but Emory University researchers were inspired by studies that indicate that a good gut can also improve the health of your heart and brain. Out of curiosity about whether probiotics could help another of our most important organs, they decided to test whether a common probiotic, Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG or LGG, could protect the liver against damage.
The study was carried out in mice, which were given a diet with LGG or regular food. After two weeks, the creatures ingested high doses of paracetamol, which could cause liver damage and even death if taken incorrectly. (Although it works to eliminate pain and fever, large doses increase the amount of free radicals, a harmful form of oxygen in our bodies.)
His findings? Mice that took probiotics for two weeks suffered less liver damage than mice that were kept on a regular diet.
Bejan Saeedi, co-author of the study and a Ph.D. candidate at Emory University, believes that probiotics increased the amount of Nrf2 protein in their bodies, which regulates antioxidants. Antioxidants are known to neutralize free radicals.
“The administration of the probiotic LGG to mice improves the antioxidant response of the liver, protecting it from oxidative damage caused by drugs such as acetaminophen,” Saeedi said in a statement. MensHealth.com reached out to researchers for more information, and we will update this story as long as we receive a response.
Saeedi doesn’t think it’s time to spend your salary on probiotics just yet.
Studies showing the protection benefits in human volunteers have yet to be conducted to indicate that LGG might help us as well.
Other studies, also in animals, have offered clues that probiotics might be good for more than just keeping you regular. These are some of the ways probiotics can benefit your entire body, from helping you lose weight to lightening your skin.