“Health is wealth.”
“Prevention is better than cure.”
Are these wise words considered to be old wives’ tales or should they serve as a guide for everyone’s lifestyle?
Although these two timeless sayings may appear to be taken for granted these days, it is indisputable that they still have far more value than just a grain of salt. There is so much golden wisdom in these sayings.
According to German Medical Doctor and Professor of Medicine Dr. Stephan Bischoff, an authority in, among others, gastroenterology and allergology, gut health can offer a new approach to preventive medicine if we learn more about how to achieve and maintain it.
Bischoff explains, “Current medical research is much more focused on the treatment of defined GI diseases rather than on the secondary or even primary prevention of disease. However, preventive medicine is increasingly perceived as being important in medical and economic terms, particularly in the field of gastroenterology.”
He adds, “Scientifically justified approaches to maintaining gut health and to preventing GI diseases are welcome” and “although this is an area with many open questions, we have started to learn that lifestyle characteristics, such as balanced diet, moderate but regular exercise and avoidance of chronic stress, but also defined products such as select pre- and probiotics, can support gut health.”
Given the now widely available studies not only of Dr. Bischoff but also of Dr. Shawn Manske and a lot of other authorities from America and Europe on the role of gut health in one’s overall health and the role of probiotics in the promotion of gut health, the golden wisdom embodied in the sayings “Health is wealth” and “Prevention is better than cure” cannot be overstated.
It’s good to start off one’s family in the healthy habits of eating a balanced diet or the proper mix of nutritious foods with adequate exercise, along with cleanliness, enough water intake and good sleeping habits, as taught in the early grades in most, if not in all, schools.
The inclusion of probiotics intake as part of preventive action where health maintenance is concerned has been gaining a wide patronage in many countries. Research and development on probiotics had flourished over time (on prebiotics too). In Japan, for example, since the period immediately preceding the 1930s, Dr Minoru Shirota of the Kyoto Imperial University School of Medicine University (now Kyoto University) started working on lactic acid bacteria culture, which he strengthened, and once ready, was tagged as Yakult and introduced as a probiotic health drink. Yakult Honsha Co., Ltd. introduced Yakult in Japan and Taiwan in the first half of the 1930s, and by now, it has become a popular Probiotic drink in as many as 40 countries and regions.
Yakult, a probiotic for the promotion of gut health, has by now become a daily drink among many Filipinos.
“Gut health,” as defined by the World Health Organization (WHO), “is a state of physical and mental well-being in the absence of gastrointestinal complaints that require the consultation of a doctor, in the absence of indications or risks of bowel disease, and in the absence of confirmed bowel disease.” (Constitution of the World Health Organization, New York 1946)
Dr. Bischoff says in his report, “Gut health can offer a new approach to preventive medicine if we learn more about how to achieve and maintain it. Current medical research is much more focused on the treatment of defined GI diseases rather than on the secondary or even primary prevention of disease.”
These are among his conclusive statements: “Preventive medicine is increasingly perceived as being important in medical and economic terms, particularly in the field of gastroenterology. Therefore, scientifically justified approaches to maintaining gut health and to preventing GI diseases are welcome.”
Dr. Minoru Shirota devoted his life to research and development of the gut-health enhancing strain of beneficial bacteria: Lacticaseibacillus paracasei strain Shirota (LcS). The resulting product, Yakult Probiotic drink, has gained international patronage. This product was formally introduced here in the Philippines in the year 1978. A Yakult plant was built in Calamba, Laguna and has for almost five decades now been serving the daily probiotic requirements of Filipino households.
Yakult has gained popularity not just in Luzon where the country’s capital is located but also in Visayas and Mindanao, and so, to better serve Filipino families—wherever they are—Yakult Philippines decided to put up another plant in Misamis Oriental.
According to Yakult Philippines, Inc. President, Mr. Alberto R. Dy Sun, the recently inaugurated second Yakult plant is located in El Salvador, Misamis Oriental. It is aptly called Yakult El Salvador Manufacturing Company Plant or YESMC Plant, for short, and Mr. Dy Sun is its Chairman.
He revealed during the interview, which took place on the occasion of the new plant’s opening on June 5, that “the plant occupies a total floor area of 25,583 sq meters, its construction area around 18,709 sq meters.” He also discussed Yakult’s army of good bacteria, which includes 8 billion live Lacticaseibacillus paracasei strain Shirota (LcS) in each bottle to safeguard each customer’s digestive tract.
Yakult has been a popular health drink for ninety years in various regions of the world, and its effectiveness as a gut-healthy beverage has demonstrated its reliability over time. It is better to start with the stomach if you want to be healthy because it has been shown that gut health influences overall health. Since prevention is always preferable to treatment, it is ideal to avoid any illness that affects the body, including the brain, as some other research has shown.
No Comments