Vitamins for Healthy Bowels
The bowels, or the large intestine consist of the colon, rectum and anal canal. It's extremely important to maintain a healthy bowel because the lining of the bowel absorbs water and salts, and repels bacteria and viruses.
Many Australians experience health problems in this area, with Irritable Bowel Syndrome being the most common.
Vitamins with significant evidence of benefit for healthy bowels:
Vitamins with some evidence of benefit for healthy bowels:
Probiotics
Each person has about 1.5 kilograms of bacteria, yeasts and other microbes in their gut. Some are good and some are bad. Probiotics are the good ones. The overall idea of taking Probiotic supplements is to increase the ratio of good bacteria which will ultimately improve the health of your digestive system.
Daily supplementation with Probiotics has been shown to reduce the risk of diarrhoea which sometimes occurs following the use of antibiotics. It also helps regulate the immune system, reduce the symptoms of bloating and irritable bowel syndrome.
The recommended number of Probiotics to be ingested per day is a minimum of 2 billion, with 10 billion probiotics being the optimum number.
Peppermint Oil
Peppermint oil is a supplement commonly known for its use in the treatment of Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Numerous trials have shown Peppermint Oil to relieve symptoms such as bloating, intestinal discomfort and constipation.
The recommended daily amount of Peppermint Oil for sufferers of Irritable Bowel Syndrome is 800mg per day – preferably split into two smaller doses.
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