Are Probiotics food components like fiber that feed the good bacteria in the body

Answer 1

Hi Billy, you almost got it right. But you are mixing up the term Prebiotics and Probiotics.

Definition:

Prebiotics = food for the good bacteria in the intestine and can help healthy bacteria thrive.

Probiotics = The good bacteria that provide many health benefits and prevent the overgrowth of unhealthy types of bacteria.

Examples of Natural food sources of prebiotics include banana, onions, garlic, honey and asparagus. Prebiotics can be found on the food label as galactooligosaccharides (GOS), fructooligosaccharides (FOS), oligofructose (OF), chicory fiber, and inulin. 

Examples of Natural food sources of probiotics include yogurt, kimchi, cultured cottage cheese and sauerkraut.

Probiotics supplements often contain live bacteria, usually Lactobacillus or Bifidobacterium, and can help restore healthy bacteria levels.

The gut microbiome and its influence on health is a hot research topic now. UMass and Stanford University both are doing great research on that, I suggest you check out their websites:

https://www.umassmed.edu/microbiome/

https://iti.stanford.edu/center-for-human-microbiome-studies.html