Prebiotics: What Are They and Do the Kids Need Them?

For many years products with Probiotics are always in the middle of the fridge. They are present in foods for the kids, formulas, and other treats because it promotes good health for your kid's gut. According to Fatherly, these probiotics help in digestion, prevent diarrhea, ease constipation, and strengthen your child's immune system. WebMD added that probiotics are also called good bacteria because they help in maintaining good gut health. Medical News Today mentioned numerous researches that we're able to discover probiotics' role in digestive health. They added that studies suggest that people with the disorder that concerns the stomach and intestines may have improvements when probiotics are taken.

Now, have you ever heard about prebiotics? These helpful components also help in your child's stomach. You might be thinking, my child already has probiotics; should I not give prebiotics? Fatherly said that these two are equally important, which means that your children need them.

(Photo: Pete Linforth )
Bananas are one of the foods which are rich in Prebiotics.

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What is prebiotics?

According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), prebiotics is a group of nutrients that are degraded by microbiota. Medical News Today added that probiotics are a type of fiber that the human body cannot process. They further that they serve as food for probiotics, which are good bacteria present in the stomach. NCBI furthers that short-chain fatty acid by-products of prebiotics are released in blood circulation, affecting the gastrointestinal tracts and distant organs.

Are they good for the kids?

News-Medical states the importance of prebiotics not just for the kids but also for the adults' guts. According to them, prebiotics kindles gut microbes' growth like lactobacillus, which contribute many beneficial effects like improving digestion and strengthening the immune system, which is timely with our current fight with COVID-19. They added that prebiotics' potential is connected to various diseases like Colorectal Cancer and Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).

Where to Get Prebiotics

It is actually not hard to find food rich in prebiotics so that your child will have a happy tummy and prevent you from episodes of them experiencing pain. According to News-Medical, prebiotics is non-digestible polysaccharides and oligosaccharides, which means that they can be found in various foods. Vegetables in your pantry, like onions, garlic, leeks, asparagus, are rich in Prebiotics. Healthline also added that fruits like bananas are rich in prebiotics and can be easily be spotted in stores or on the market. Parents added that manufacturers are extracting prebiotics from plants and incorporate them into food. They emphasized that adding prebiotics to food like yogurts, cereals, and other treats can deliver more fiber needed by the body. They also stressed that constipation is a common problem with kids, and these fibers can help ease that for them.

Cautions

Although prebiotics is very beneficial to the body, Parents added that prebiotics could rattle a child's tummy if they are not used to consuming them. They suggested that adding them slowly to a kid's diet will help them get used to it.

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