A Tale of A Probiotic
For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Probi - short for probiotic. I am one of the billions of gut bacteria found in only one capsule of Nature’s Way® Primadophilus®. The legend says that my probiotic forefathers came from the breast milk of a South-American woman from the Andes. Sounds remote, I know, but it means I am of a really fine breed. I, on the other hand, grew-up in a pristine lab on a petri dish amongst scientists who poked and prodded continuously, checking to see I was alive and viable.
Ever since I was a day-old bacterium my life’s aim was to find a human digestive system and live in it happily ever after, with all my friends and off-spring. I had a gut feeling I was about to fulfil my destiny.…
The impatient, half dormant waiting period in the capsule didn’t last for long. In a fraction of a moment, we were suddenly tumbling over each other as the capsule jerked and was tossed around. The silent wait had now become an exciting adventure, swishing down long tubes and crevices, stopping in what appeared to be a steaming furnace. From the safety of our enteric-coated capsule we could see other bacteria and food particles break into tiny pieces, the fire of the human stomach acid taking no hostages. I knew we were safe – the enteric-coating of our capsule is what makes us Primadophilus® probiotics so special and different from others…
With a gurgling noise and a thump we were once again in motion, washed by fluids of amazing colours and textures. And then, like a miracle, the capsule surrounding us started to dissolve. “See you soon, my friend!” Lacto shouted. “Remember what we are here to do!” I smiled and waved, feeling the warm liquid starting to envelop me.
While I enjoyed my bathing in these foreign liquids, I suddenly became aware of my surroundings. My uplifted mood turned to shock as a sight I never expected to see unfolded– this human gut I had arrived at, was a site of devastation. A slum of gruesome, unfriendly “Infectives” that ravaged their surroundings and left nothing but wreckage. These were no friends, they were “the bad guys” we had been warned about - transformed Candida, E. Coli, Staph strains, Campylobacter and more. The “Infectives” had taken over this land once occupied by us “good guys”. I decided it was time to reclaim what was rightly ours!
It seemed this determination had filtered like wild fire through all us new arrivals, as suddenly, all my sleepy friends had instantaneously become probiotic ninjas, ready to eradicate these “Infectives”. And so the battle began; it was ruthless. Bacterial particles flew in all directions; casualties were not spared from either side, but in the end, we rightfully won through and balance was restored to our territory. Time to celebrate! There wasn’t one good bacteria that didn’t feel proud of being a probiotic that day. From that moment on, this gut had become our healthy paradise and I had fulfilled my purpose. We were living our dream.
(Originally published in Health & Herbal News Magazine Volume 19, Issue 1)