What to eat or What to avoid while being on antibiotics?
Eating foods rich in probiotics and prebiotics can help your stomach stay strong. Prebiotics are high-fiber foods that your body can’t digest. They feed the probiotics as they pass through your digestive tract, stimulating their growth. In other words, they help the good bacteria (the probiotics) in your gut flourish and make them more effective.
When you’re taking antibiotics, it’s a good idea to eat a diet that’s rich in both prebiotics and probiotics.
Prebiotic-rich Foods
Certain prebiotic-rich foods are essential for health while taking antibiotics. Some good options are as follows:
- Leafy bitter greens, like dandelion greens, seaweed, and spinach
- Onions, garlic, and leeks
- Asparagus
- Bananas
- Apples
- Barley
- Oats
- Cocoa
- Flaxseeds
- Roots, like chicory root and jicama root
- Jerusalem artichoke
These can all help to increase beneficial bacteria like Bifidobacteria and Lactobacillus.
Probiotic-rich Foods
It is also essential to add more probiotic-rich foods to your diet, such as the following:
- Fermented foods like raw, unpasteurized sauerkraut (pasteurization kills the live and active bacteria), tempeh, and kimchi
- Miso
- Yogurt (with live and active cultures), kefir, and buttermilk (traditional, not cultured)
- Kombucha
- Pickles (cucumbers pickled in salty water and fermented; pickles made with vinegar do not have probiotic effects)
If you are trying to incorporate pre-and probiotic foods into your diet, double-check with your doctor or pharmacist about foods and drinks that may interfere with your antibiotics.
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Role of Antibiotics
Antibiotics play a critical role in killing bad bacteria. But as they destroy infections, they can also cause collateral damage to the beneficial bacteria in your gut, resulting in diarrhea for a couple of days—or even weeks—after you stop taking the medicine. You need the health benefits of antibiotic treatment but don’t want the nasty stomach side effects.
How to overcome the side effects of Antibiotics?
Antibiotics-diarrhea connection impacts 5% and 39% of patients, depending on which antibiotic they take. But research shows that probiotic use can curb digestion problems. In fact, taking probiotics during the entire course of antibiotics effectively reduces side effects like antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD). They work as a treatment and also preventively. That’s because probiotics replenish the beneficial bacteria in the gut to prevent disrupting the microbiome’s balance.
A meta-analysis of 34 other studies found that probiotics reduce instances of AAD by 52%.
Learn more about Biom Probiotics 3-in-1 Precision Formula (H3)
Biom’s high-strength microbiome supplement works especially well for those with demanding gastrointestinal tract issues. Equipped with advanced probiotics and Biom’s 3-in-1 TriBiom technology, every capsule comprises a prebiotic, probiotic, and immunobiotic. Each of these offers distinct advantages for the digestive tract.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which food should we eat while taking antibiotics to avoid nausea or vomiting?
Eating small, nutrient-dense meals alongside probiotic-rich foods like yogurt can help minimize nausea or vomiting when taking antibiotics. These foods can aid in restoring the balance of gut flora impacted by antibiotic usage.
What to eat an hour before the administration of antibiotics?
Consuming easy-to-digest foods like bananas, rice, applesauce, and toast (BRAT diet) an hour before taking antibiotics can be beneficial. These foods are less likely to cause stomach upset and can help absorb the medication effectively.
Can a person on a diet take antibiotics?
Yes, a person on a diet can take antibiotics. However, it's essential to maintain a balanced diet rich in fiber, protein, and probiotics, which can support gut health and enhance the effectiveness of antibiotics.