5 Probiotic Products That Really Work

In recent years, much of the biggest news in food sales has focused on probiotics, microbes that benefit your health. But now they're not the only "biotic" generating headlines. Prebiotics are showing up in health bars, cereals, and more. These are not microbes, but a type of soluble fiber that nourishes the good bacteria in your gut. Prebiotics are often added to foods billed as "high in fiber" (they may be listed on the label as inulin or chicory root extract). But what do probiotics and prebiotics do for you? How do you know whether to try them, or which to choose?

Related: Lose 10 Pounds in One Month

For prebiotics, answers are still coming. Research suggests they may help increase calcium absorption, protect against traveler's diarrhea, and play a role in preventing colon cancer. What we do know: Taken in a high enough dose — five to eight grams a day — they can bump up the count of beneficial bacteria already in your digestive tract, says probiotic expert and industry consultant Mary Ellen Sanders, Ph.D. Supplements, such as FiberChoice and Prebiotin, provide four grams per serving; you can't calculate the amount in fiber-boosted foods because the prebiotics are not counted separately from a product's other soluble fiber. But note: If you're trying to boost your fiber intake in general, whole foods are still best.

Related: Anti-Aging Diet Tips

Probiotics have been better studied, and guidelines for their use are now emerging. For a start, each strain is specific: Just because one may help with a certain condition doesn't mean it will work for another, says Anthony J. Lembo, M.D., associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. You also may have to try several products to see which is best for you. But there's promising evidence for the problems listed below.

The following products deliver the right (study-tested) probiotic strains:

1. For Colds
Probiotics may ease your coughing and runny nose, and shorten a cold's duration. Sick or well, you need to have some every day.
What to try: Attune Probiotic Chocolate Bar; CVS Digestive Probiotic capsules

2. For Antibiotic Side Effects
In research, probiotics cut the odds of antibiotic-associated diarrhea 57% and invasion of Clostridium difficile 41%.
What to try: Culturelle capsules; Florastor capsules; DanActive Dairy Drink

3. For Keeping You Regular
Daily consumption of probiotics may result in faster, easier transit of food through your GI tract, with possible relief of belly distension and pain.
What to try: Dannon Activia Yogurt

4. For Digestive Woes
Both irritable bowel syndrome and lactose-intolerance symptoms may improve with probiotics.
What to try: For IBS: Align capsules; for lactose intolerance: all yogurts with live, active cultures.

5. For UTI Returns
Eating fermented milk products at least three times a week may head off recurrent urinary tract infections.
What to try: Stonyfield yogurt; Bio-K Plus International Fermented Milk



-By Janis Graham

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3 Ways to Stop Worrying About Sleep

Instead of over-the-counter or prescription sleeping pills, the drug-free, research-proven techniques of cognitive behavioral therapy, or CBT could help you quiet your mind and teach you to overcome sleep problems. In studies, CBT worked as well or better than medications — and kept on working for at least a year after people learned its simple strategies. Start by priming your body, mind, and sleep environment. Then put these steps to work at home.

Get up if you're not sleeping. Tossing and turning boosts anxiety and sends your brain the message that your bed is a stressful spot. If you can't sleep, get up and read a boring book or magazine in another room until you're feeling sleepy.

Discover your sleep number. Figuring out how much sleep you really need can help you assess whether or not you've had a good night's sleep. Researchers say some people who believe they have insomnia actually need less than 7 or 8 hours a night. Are you among them? For clues, think about how much sleep you need when you're on vacation and stress is low, or how much you've gotten on mornings when you wake up feeling refreshed.

PLUS: 7 Sleep Disorders Keeping You Awake

Try going to bed later for 4 to 5 nights. It sounds crazy, but one of the most effective strategies for combating insomnia is restricting the total number of hours you spend in bed. CBT practitioners recommend staying up late for a few nights, so that the sleep you do get is unbroken. Don't go to bed until you truly feel like you can fall asleep. Try it over a weekend. You may feel pretty tired for a few nights until your body learns to sleep straight through. Then, start getting to bed earlier, by moving your bedtime back about a half hour per night.

from Reverse Diabetes

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How your sun sign dictates your well-being

It's no secret that if your mind is healthy, your body is likely to follow suit. But how good is your astrological sign at maintaining this oh-so-crucial balance in life? Read about your Sun sign below and find out!

Gemini has a tendency to think too much, so they need calming physical activities to achieve balance. To their credit, they refuse to consider themselves anything but young, which ultimately serves to ... keep them young!

Virgo can be a hypochondriac, but fortunately for them, they know the best cures and generally avoid excess. That said, they need to stop imagining that every little sniffle represents foreboding disaster!

Aquarius can be the nervous type, and their body often soaks up their jitters, which in turn causes digestion issues. Pulling themselves out of their overactive brain (and tummy) is a must; adopting a more tranquil approach to life will help.

Learn how to channel your body's natural energy into everything you do with a free sample Chakra Reading!



Pisces will benefit from a more positive approach to life. They should start their day in a robust frame of mind with a mantra along the lines of, "I am strong and I can do it." As their inner core revitalizes, everything else will fall in line.

Naturally cautious by nature, Capricorn can grow old before their time; if they can remain mellow, however, they'll actually get younger with age. Instead of becoming overly negative, they need to simply trust that life is there for the taking!

Taurus and Scorpio tend to view life in terms of longevity, but both are prone to becoming stuck in their ways. If they approach each day as a new beginning, they'll always have a sparkle in their eye and a spring in their step.

Explore your personality through the Mayan view of astrology with a fascinating free sample Maya-Aztec Reading!


Cancer tends to yearn for the balmy days of childhood, and they certainly don't relish the aging process (although who does?). If they can divert themselves from looking at the past and instead set their sights on the future, they'll find themselves in better shape before long.

Libra likes to look on the bright side of life and places a premium on appearances, so they rarely let themselves become too imbalanced. Their positive spirit keeps them skipping along quite elegantly.

Finally, Aries, Leo and Sagittarius all believe their considerable energy is truly infinite. Recharging their batteries and keeping themselves grounded helps them maintain their wonderfully open approach to life.

Reveal a portrait of your soul's true intention and let the power of destiny bring your future into focus with a free sample Destiny Reading!

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13 natural cold remedies: What works and what doesn't

By now, pretty much everybody is back to school, and in many parts of the country, fall has suddenly arrived with a vengeance. That means cold season is not far behind.

You've heard the old saying about a cold, "Treat it, it lasts for two weeks; don't treat it, it lasts for 14 days," right? The fact is, there's not a lot you can do to get rid of a cold once you have one. But there are a whole host of options out there to lessen the stuffy-nosed, coughing, scratchy-throated, headachey misery. As it happens, some of the most effective ones are natural remedies. Here's a rundown:

Nasal irrigation (neti pot, saline spray, etc.): People swear by their neti pots for a reason -- they work. A neti pot, saline spray, or even a homemade wash clears mucus from the nose while also removing cold viruses and bacteria.

More from The Stir: Get Your Flu Shot Now, or Get the Flu Later

Steam: Inhaling steam from a hot shower, leaning over a pot of simmering water, or putting a wet washcloth in the microwave for a minute and laying it over your face as soon as it's cool enough to handle eases congestion, the warmth feels good on your face if you have sinus pain along with your symptoms.

Chicken soup: One study about 10 years ago said that said chicken soup has anti-inflammatory properties that can ease a cold. The problem? It wasn't a scientific, double-blind study because there's no real placebo for chicken soup! However, it can't hurt and might help, especially made by you for your child, because Mom's chicken soup is the best (even if it really came out of a can). It's the steam and fluids from the soup that help most, which is good news for vegetarians because vegetable soup will work just as well.

Vitamin C: One study has shown that taking vitamin C daily doesn't help prevent colds, but can slightly shorten their duration as long as it's taken every day and not just after a cold starts. Interestingly, another study showed that for highly fit people, such as marathon runners, vitamin C cut their risk of getting a cold in half.

Echinacea: One study showed that daily use could cut the risk of getting a cold by 58 percent and the duration of the cold by 1.4 days, but other studies haven't replicated that result.

Goldenseal: There's even less evidence that this works than there is for echinacea.

Garlic: One study found it cut the risk of getting a cold and shortened the duration of a cold once a person got one; others have been inconclusive. A common remedy is to boil raw chopped garlic in water and drink the resulting broth or gargle with it. Good luck getting your kid to try that ...

Ginseng: One study found it had no effect on the duration of the flu or the probability of contracting it.

More from The Stir: My Second Grader Drinks Coffee Daily

Honey: This is popular for coughs; one tablespoon of honey before bed has been shown to reduce cough symptoms in children. And this is medicine they'll gladly take.

Hot ginger tea: Ginger is used in traditional Chinese medicine and in Ayurvedic medicine as a cold remedy. There aren't good studies on its effectiveness, but like chicken soup, the steam and fluid probably help most.

Zinc: Some studies have shown zinc lozenges work to shorten the duration of a cold; others have found no effect. And the FDA has warned against the use of Zicam, a zinc nasal ointment, because several consumers reported they lost their sense of smell after trying it.

Rest, fluids, and staying warm: Turns out the best thing for your children (and you, once you inevitably get their cold) is to do what they want anyway ... relax on the couch with a soft blanket and a warm drink. It lets the body turn its energy to fighting the virus and certainly makes a cold feel less miserable.

What's your favorite natural cold remedy?

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200 Pounds lighter and "a 180-degree turn for the better!"

BEFORE: 345 lbs(Scroll down to see photo)

AFTER: 145 lbs

When Mary Renwick moved with her husband, Tim, who was in the Navy, from Monroe, Michigan, to a military base in Sicily in 1999, her six-foot frame was lean and willowy. But while Tim worked odd hours at his new job, Mary filled her lonely days with food. "I ate for comfort and indulged in the local cuisine--oily pasta, buttered bread, lots of cannoli," she says. By the time Tim was discharged and they returned to Monroe in 2002, she was 90 pounds heavier and depressed. In the next seven years, Mary gave birth to two boys, which improved her spirits but not her weight.


THE CHANGE In December 2009, Mary reached down to pick up her youngest son, Parker, then 5 months old, and felt a stab in her back. A visit to the doctor revealed two bulging disks and a pinched nerve. "When I learned my weight was the main factor in my injury, I decided I could not, would not, live like that anymore," she says.

6 Comfort Food Recipe Makeovers

THE LIFESTYLE When the pain subsided in January 2010, Mary joined a gym. "Once I developed the mind-set to regain my health, there wasn't much to stop me," she says. At first, all she could do was walk on the treadmill, slowly increasing speed over time.

"Within the first month of working out, I pulled out of my funk," she says. "Who needs therapy when there's a treadmill and weights?" It was uplifting to see 25 pounds melt off, but she hit a wall in March.

To push the scale below 220, she signed up for two back-to-back monthlong boot-camp classes. When they ended, she did intervals and lifted weights five days a week, using Women's Health iPhone apps. Mary also streamlined her diet. "I replaced processed foods and bad carbs with high-fiber options and healthy fats," she says. Just before she hit her goal weight of 155 in September 2010, Mary was able to stop seeing a chiropractor for her back pain--it was completely gone.


THE REWARD "Not only is my back fine, but I also have a strong core and I'm more fit than I've ever been," she says. In fact, Mary has become such an exercise junkie that she may make it a career. "I went from being embarrassed at the gym because I was obese to being asked if I was a personal trainer," she says.  "I still haven't stopped smiling!"

No-Crunch Moves to Build a Stronger Core

Mary's Tips


Learn to cook.
"I don't eat out often because even 'healthier' menu items can be loaded with butter, oil, and sodium. At home, I know exactly what I'm eating."

Move and mingle.
"Before, I used food as a reason to socialize with friends. When my health goals shifted, we started hiking or shopping instead."


Tell us:  Is there an unhealthy eating habit you're trying to kick? What is it?

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How to handle a partner that wrecks your diet

You have to be able to handle what life throws at you. That's why it's important to know how to handle a partner that wrecks your diet.Credit: istockphoto.com/LawrenceSawyer, LawrenceSawyer

One of the complaints many women have is that their partners sabotage their diets. The truth is many partners don't realize what they're doing. They don't set out to wreck your plans and even if they did, it all boils down to you. You have to be able to handle what life throws at you. That's what it's important to know how to handle a partner that wrecks your diet.

Talk to Your Partner

While women are often nutritional gurus, men sometimes don't know anything about nutrition or the rules of the diet plan you may be on. This means they may purchase something to eat because they know it's something you like. While this can be hard on your diet, you shouldn't yell at your partner. After all, they were trying to do something nice. Instead, you need to sit down with your partner and explain your diet plan. Tell him how important it is to you and what you can and cannot have. Also explain that you appreciate his nice gesture and it means a lot to you, but you have to stick to your plan. In most cases, your partner will work with you to help you succeed and will look for other ways to surprise you.

Have Options

Men love taking women out for dinner and women love going out for dinner. However, if you're not prepared, this can be a problem. The next thing you know, you've consumed a meal that leaves you feeling guilty. Instead of blaming your partner, why not have a plan in place? Write down the restaurants you visit on regular basis and then write down the healthy options that fit into your diet plan. This may take a bit of time, but it will help you make better decisions.

Put Your Foot Down

There are some partners that feel that they can't eat what they want because you are on a diet. This is the type that really will try to sabotage your efforts. When this happens, you have to be strong and put your foot down. Even if you have to yell at the top of your lungs that you are tired of living the way you do and want to eat healthier, do it. Explain that he can eat whatever he wants, but you are on a diet and not giving in to temptation. It may be an uncomfortable moment, but it may be the only thing that saves your diet.

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