Healthy Aging Requires a Greater Need for
Postbiotic Metabolites

Postbiotic metabolites are increasingly recognized as compounds that play essential roles in regulating many aspects of health, especially the immune system. It is well documented that as people age, there is an age-related decline in immune function. Aging doesn’t just happen to the body; it also affects the microbiome. Aging is associated with striking changes in the gut microbiome, resulting in constipation, increased inflammation, and a decline in immune function.i

One of the primary causes of age-associated changes in the microbiome’s composition and function is a decrease in the production of postbiotic metabolites. In a healthy microbiome, probiotic bacteria abundantly produce Postbiotics that provide many benefits, such as suppressing pathogens’ growth and enhancing immune function.ii

What’s Better, Probiotics or Postbiotic Metabolites?

Probiotic bacteria are largely ineffective if the individual is not also consuming adequate dietary fiber. Fiber is the “food” for probiotic bacteria. When probiotic bacteria ferment indigestible nutritional fibers in the colon, they produce postbiotic metabolites.

Taking a fermented food probiotic is a newer and more effective method of improving the gut microbiome’s composition and function. During fermentation, probiotic bacteria break down dietary fibers and convert them into a wide range of postbiotic metabolites. The world’s premier fermented food probiotic is Dr. Ohhira’s Probiotics. After a multi-year fermentation production process, each dose of Dr. Ohhira’s Probiotics directly delivers over 500 different postbiotic metabolites.

Direct ingestion of postbiotic metabolites eliminates the time it takes ingested probiotic bacteria to locate dietary fibers in the intestinal tract. It then begins fermenting the fibers to create postbiotic metabolites. However, it has been reported that 90% of children and adults in America DO NOT consume the recommended amount of daily dietary fiber.iii Hence, millions of people who purchase commercial probiotic products get minimal benefits because their diets are severely fiber deficient.

When an individual directly ingests postbiotic metabolites, they immediately begin to create positive changes in the intestinal tract, such as reducing symptoms of gas, bloating, and diarrhea, reducing the inflammatory response, and enhancing immune function.

As mentioned above, numerous age-related diet and lifestyle changes contribute to unfavorable gut microbiome composition and function changes and weaken the immune system.

Two of the most important proactive steps people can take to improve the function of their microbiome and their immune system are:

  1. Take Dr. Ohhira’s Probiotics daily. Dr. Ohhira’s Probiotics contain over 500 postbiotic metabolites. Direct ingestion of postbiotic metabolites quickly begins to initiate improvements in the gut microbiome and the immune system. This is the Dr. Ohhira’s Advantage.
  2. Increase the daily consumption of fiber-rich foods, supporting the growth of an individual’s innate probiotic bacteria. In addition to increasing the amount of dietary fiber, emphasis should also be placed on improving dietary fiber diversity.

While these suggestions are essential for everyone, they are critical steps elderly individuals can take to improve their microbiome and immune system health.

 
i Magrone T and Jirillo E. The interaction between gut microbiota and age-related immune function and inflammation. Immunity & Aging. Aug 5, 2013;10:31.
ii Belkaid Y and Hand T. Role of the Microbiota in Immunity and Inflammation. Cell. 2014 Mar 27;157(1):121-141.
iii Clemens R. et al. Filling America’s Fiber Intake Gap: Summary of a Roundtable to Probe Realistic Solutions with a Focus on Grain-Based Foods. Journal of Nutrition. 2012 July; 142(7): 1390S-1401S.