Fructo-oligosaccharide (FOS), a complex sugar derived from plants, is widely used in Japan in more than 450 different food products. Unlike the refined sugar, FOS is actually good for you. In fact, it offers so many health benefits that it is now being marketed as a nutritional supplement. Also known as neosugar or inulin, FOS is abundant in Jerusalem artichokes and is found in smaller amounts in many different fruits and vegetables.
What is unique about FOS is that it is not broken down by digestive juices, like other sugars. Rather, it passes directly to the gut, where it is digested by “good” bacteria, thereby encouraging their growth.
The human body is host to billions of microorganisms-some good, some bad. The good bacteria perform many essential tasks: they aid in digestion, enhance immune function, control the growth of bad bacteria and fungi, and help prevent cancer by maintaining the right acidity levels in the gastrointestinal tract. There are more than 400 different species of bacteria in the gut, but the ones that are most beneficial include Bifidobacterium bifidum, Lactobacillus acidophilus, and Lactobacillus bulgaricus. Bifidobacteria are particularly important because they are involved in the breakdown of key B vitamins.
To maintain optimum health, it is essential to maintain the right balance between the good and the bad bacteria.
Refined sugar, meat, and highly processed foods tip the scales against friendly bacteria and encourage the growth of bad bacteria. If the balance tips too much in favor of bad bacteria, we are at greater risk of developing yeast infections, gastric disorders, and even the formation of carcinogens in the liver and colon, which can lead to cancer. As we age, levels of good bacteria decline, which may be responsible for our greater susceptibility to disease in later years.
Studies have shown that when older people are given FOS supplements, their Bifidobacterium count increases. There is also a decrease in the pH of the lower intestine, making it inhospitable to bad bacteria.
Japanese studies have shown that eating 3 to 6 grams daily of FOS can reduce the level of toxic cancer-causing compounds in human feces by over 40 percent within three weeks. What is truly remarkable is that FOS can also normalize blood sugar levels. Eating too much refined sugar may cause abnormalities in blood sugar that can lead to problems such as Type II diabetes or insulin resistance. But FOS, according to some studies, can reduce high blood sugar levels in diabetic people and also lower elevated cholesterol levels.
Witch's Well 