Probiotics for Men’s Health

The gut-muscle axis - supporting muscle recovery via the gut

As the importance of physical activity for overall health and wellbeing is recognised more and more, many men are on the lookout for ways to help support their training so that they can build and maintain lean muscle mass more effectively. It may seem curious that having good gut health could help boost muscle recovery, but research shows that there is indeed a connection here. This connection, termed the ‘gut-muscle axis’,² describes the relationship between our gut, the gut microbiota, and our muscles.

What researchers have come to understand is that there are certain factors which can disrupt the balance of microorganisms living in the gut, causing gut dysbiosis, which can subsequently affect our muscle function - including muscle recovery after exercise. Factors such as poor nutrition, high stress, or antibiotic use can disrupt the community of microorganisms living in the gut, triggering inflammation. For example, inflammation-causing byproducts released by microorganisms in the gut can activate the immune system, which responds by creating an inflammatory response. This starts in the gut but can transfer throughout the entire body, with this inflammation impairing muscle growth and recovery.² When higher levels of background inflammation are present, the muscle recovery process can be compromised when intense exercise further ramps up the inflammatory response.³

Fortunately, clinically-trialled probiotics can serve as a simple tool to not only help mitigate mild muscle inflammation associated with exercise, but also to speed up recovery time so men can get the most out of their resistance training.

Probiotics for muscle recovery after exercise

The right probiotic strains may help muscles to recover faster after workouts. The combination of probiotic strains in Biome Recovery™ Probiotic, Streptococcus thermophilus FP4 and Bifidobacterium breve BR03, have been studied in healthy, resistance-trained men to see how they influence post-exercise recovery. After 21 days of supplementation, the combination of probiotic strains in Biome Recovery™ Probiotic helped to reduce mild muscle inflammation, improve muscle recovery time, and aid post-exercise recovery.⁴

IBS and digestive symptoms

Pain and discomfort in the digestive system, as well as tendencies for loose stools, or bowel movements which are slow and hard to pass are just a few of the common digestive symptoms men can experience throughout their lives. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in particular is a collection of symptoms such as abdominal pain, gas, bloating, and changes to bowel movements which can vary greatly between individuals. IBS is diagnosed only when all other causes for alternating bowel habits and digestive discomfort are ruled out.⁵

While IBS tends to predominate in women, there are certain subtypes of IBS, or characteristic IBS symptoms which tend to show up more in men who have been diagnosed with IBS. For example, the subtype of IBS which is characterised by a tendency for frequent loose stools, or diarrhoea is termed IBS-D, and it is this type which is more prevalent in males. Stool frequency, or the number of times needed to evacuate the bowels in a given time period, tends to be higher in men with IBS than women.⁶

IBS symptoms can significantly affect quality of life, and given men are less likely to seek support from a health professional for their symptoms,⁶ it can be helpful to know that targeted probiotics can help to alleviate symptoms of medically diagnosed IBS.

Probiotics for IBS support

Two particular strains have been well researched for their ability to reduce IBS symptoms– Lactobacillus plantarum 299v and Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG – which is why they are included in the Biome IBS™ Probiotic formulation.

Looking at the strain L. rhamnosus GG, when people with IBS took this probiotic strain for six weeks, it was shown to relieve the symptoms of IBS by 76% compared to the control condition.⁷

L. plantarum 299v has also shown some benefit in patients with IBS in clinical trials. One large study showed that after four weeks of taking this probiotic strain, 78% of people rated their improvement in IBS symptoms as “excellent” or “good” compared to only 8% of people who took the placebo.⁸

Supporting the gut-brain axis for better mood and sleep quality

Common phrases such as “butterflies in my stomach”, and having a “gut feeling” give subtle clues about how our gut and nervous system are connected. The two-way communication to and from the gut and the brain is known as the gut-brain axis, and this important connection influences everything from your stress tolerance, to your sleep quality, and your mood and mental wellbeing.⁹

When the gut microbiota is balanced, it produces beneficial compounds that support nervous system function, which helps regulate our mood and sleep. Conversely, if there are imbalances in the gut and we have a dysbiotic microbiota, this can contribute to low mood, poor stress tolerance, disrupted sleep, as well as IBS, which we explored earlier. In fact, connecting the dots between poor sleep, the importance of adequate stress management, and IBS symptoms is something we have written about in this blog article which may help expand your understanding about the importance of the gut-brain axis in overall health and wellbeing.

Knowing now that the gut-brain axis plays a significant role in how we feel, we can appreciate that this may serve as an ideal target to support men who are seeking to support and maintain their mental and emotional wellbeing. This is an ideal area to focus on, since many men are less likely to reach out for support, likely due to increased stigma informed by social expectations around men being strong, stoic, and self-reliant.¹⁰ Hence, tools like strain-specific probiotics can be an easy option for men to explore when it comes to supporting their mood and emotional wellbeing.

Probiotics for mood and sleep support

A number of clinical trials have investigated the combination of strains in Biome Lift™ Probiotic, with findings showing that taking Biome Lift™ Probiotic daily for six weeks can significantly improve various measures of mood and sleep.^11-14 Across the studies, participants taking this combination of strains reported a 44% improvement in mood balance, a 29% improvement in sleep quality, and a 21% improvement in fatigue. These improvements carried through for three weeks after participants stopped supplementing with this combination of strains.

Cholesterol, heart health and your gut

It is well known that healthy cholesterol levels are important for cardiovascular health. An emerging area of research which may help understand this connection better is the exploration of the role of the gut microbiota in regulating cholesterol levels. For example, it is understood that certain gut microbes produce specific enzymes which can help in maintaining healthy cholesterol levels.¹⁶ This may provide a unique opportunity to work with the gut microbiota by using clinically researched probiotic strains to help maintain healthy cholesterol.

Probiotics for healthy cholesterol levels

Biome Cholesterol™ Probiotic combines three specific strains of Lactobacillus plantarum that have been clinically studied for their role in helping maintain healthy cholesterol levels in healthy adults. Collectively, these studies found that the strains in Biome Cholesterol™ Probiotic were shown to support healthy cholesterol levels when taken daily for a period of 12 weeks.^17-20

Revisiting the idea that the state of our gut microbiota can influence cholesterol levels, we can start to uncover how the strains in Biome Cholesterol™ Probiotic may be working to improve cholesterol levels. Mechanistic research has shown that the specific probiotic strains in Biome Cholesterol™ Probiotic produce enzymes that help the body naturally process cholesterol,¹⁶ providing insight into how this specific combination of strains help support healthy cholesterol levels.

Selecting the right probiotic for men

Exploring how the gut and its microbiota play a significant role in many areas of men’s health, including muscle recovery, IBS, mood, sleep and cholesterol levels, can help us understand the importance of how we can harness the potential of probiotics to support men in these areas.

Finding the best probiotic for men involves selecting the right strains for the right health concern, with clinical evidence to support its use for a specific purpose. For example, if supporting exercise recovery and improving muscle recovery time is a priority, Biome Recovery™ Probiotic would be the most appropriate, while Biome IBS™ Probiotic may be better suited to men experiencing digestive symptoms associated with IBS. If the gut-brain axis may benefit from some targeted support, especially to assist men with sleep quality and mood balance, Biome Lift™ Probiotic may be a suitable probiotic to use. Men looking to maintain healthy cholesterol levels may benefit from Biome Cholesterol™ Probiotic.

Targeted probiotic strains can be one of the easiest ways to not only support men’s gut health, but to also support many other areas of health and wellbeing. If you are interested in learning more about which probiotics may be best for you, you can find a local health professional to help you here.