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Probiotic vs. Prebiotic: What’s the difference?

Probiotic and prebiotic are both great for gut health, but serve different purposes

Woman shopping for produce.

Probiotic rich diets and supplements have become a popular remedy to the ever-present stomach issues that some runners experience. 

Recently, prebiotics have recently emerged as another popular nutrition buzzword. Probiotic and prebiotic sound so similar that they could be the same thing, but it turns out, the two stomach properties serve different purposes. 

Probiotics are healthy gut bacteria that are naturally occurring in all fermented foods. They can improve immune system support, digestion and absorption, and bowel function.

Prebiotics are non-digestible dietary fibers that can stimulate the growth of probiotic-like bacteria that is normally presented in the gut. Simply put, prebiotics act as the food that is consumed by the billions of bacteria in your gut, such as probiotics. Prebiotics are not bacteria themselves, but rather promote the health and multiplication of bacteria.

You don’t need to take a prebiotic for a probiotic to work, but when used together, probiotics can become more effective.  Pro and prebiotics are available in supplement form, but also naturally occurring in many foods. 

RELATED: Should I be taking probiotics? 

Examples of prebiotic rich foods are: asparagus, bananas, onion, garlic, artichoke and legumes. Probiotic rich foods include: kimchi, kombucha, sauerkraut and pickles. 

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If you are curious about pre and probiotic, but not sold on trying the supplement just yet, consider working some of these foods into your diet and see if you notice any positive changes. 

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