Soil-based probiotics
Michael Ventresca • June 13, 2023
Are soil-based probiotics the best option yet?
A question I’m often asked is, “What’s a good probiotic?” Given the massive number of options available on store shelves, it can be tough to decide. However, even among the best brands (and I’d like to think we have them at Vital Choice), many are fairly similar providing strains of lactic-acid bacteria (LAB) like lactobacillus acidophilus. Today, I’d like to share with you a completely different type of probiotic, and one that may just be the best option yet.
Soil-based organisms (SBOs) are bacteria naturally found in the earth; dirt to be specific. In fact, until relatively recently, before the modern hyper-hygienic times, dirt is where we got most of our probiotics.
Back in the day, we would grow our own food in nutrient dense soil, pull it from the ground and eat it, often without washing. When we did this, we fed our gut with SBOs which are far different than most of today’s LAB supplements. So, what makes SBOs so different?
Built to survive harsh environments, SBOs are heat resistant and hearty. They simply don’t need a good environment to thrive. After all, they needed to survive in the soil, with all its harsh extremes including high heat, huge swings in humidity, pathogens and UV light. Because of their natural protection, SBOs survive the journey through the stomach far better and with the help of far fewer colony-forming units (CFUs) than lactobacillus-based supplements. Once in the gut, SBOs have been shown to provide both direct benefit as well as nourish and awaken the bacteria already present in the gut.
Clinical research shows soil-based organisms help support gut repair, reduce inflammation, support immune health and normalize bowel movements. While they are a great choice for anyone looking to improve gut health, they appear especially useful for those suffering with IBS, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), leaky gut, Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis.
Ancient Nutrition offers a complete line of SBOs. Their latest innovation is SBO Probiotics Trinity, which is quite possibly the most complete SBO probiotic I’ve seen providing patented and clinically studied soil-based strains, along with prebiotics, parabiotics and postbiotics. is SBO Probiotics Trinity can taken any time of day, with or without food, and never requires refrigeration.
One final note – if you are happy with your probiotic supplement, my advice is to stick with it. There is valid research supporting the use of LABs. However, if you’ve taken probiotics in the past and have never found much benefit, or if you have significant gut health challenges like those listed above, I urge you to give a SBO probiotic a try.
Mike Ventresca is owner of Vital Choice Health Store located at 9243 Sprague Road in North Royalton. The phone number is 440-885-9505. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.
