1. Ting C.
2. Lana K.
3. Diana C.
4. Zambrano M.
5. Charlene K.
6. Pamela T.
7. Jessica W.
8. Yida Z.
9. Andrew X.
10. Shu Min C.

Yakult’s love of sport has meant that we love being able to support and encourage teams around Australia. Recently Yakult visited Sydney in order to further show their support to some local teams. Yakult has built up a partnership with Mate FC https://matefc.com/en/  and Sydney Cheerleading Springs https://sydneycheersprings.wixsite.com/mysite

Yakult has been able to align with their vision at Mate FC to sponsor them. Mate FC aims to promote the joy of physical activity and the importance of having dreams through soccer.
The club would like to teach discipline, greetings, and language, and make the school a place where positive words can be heard on the field.
Our goal is to support the development of children who can adapt to any environment and grow up to be active in soccer and the world. The support from Yakult was further shown by the donation of soccer balls.

Yakult’s corporate physiology is ‘We contribute to the health and happiness of people around the world through the pursuit of excellence in life sciences in general and our research and experience in microorganisms in particular. Being able to support growing communities is a passion we continue to extend.

The Sydney Cheerleading springs is also a community building high energy, encouragement and big smiles to all. The cheerleading program aims to provide opportunities to build self-esteem and a lifelong friendship and to learn courtesy by working together in a team environment. Yakult Australia is a proud supporter of Sydney Cheerleading Springs. The donation of cheerleading mats was also donated to them.

How would you describe the taste of Yakult?

Yakult has a refreshing sweet and tangy taste. This flavour is unique to Yakult but our fans often describe it as tropical and fresh with nods to lime and citrus but with a creamy twist! This is because it has the unique Yakult fresh zesty taste (from the natural fermentation process and add flavour) blended with the creamy vanilla (from the taste of the milk).

Our founder Dr Minoru Shirota first developed the world’s first commercially available probiotic drink to deliver live beneficial bacteria to our intestines in the 1930s, with the hope its benefits and taste would be widely accepted. In honour of Dr Shirota, the Original taste of Yakult has been maintained across 40 different countries around the world.

I have seen flavoured Yakult overseas. Do you have different flavours in Australia?

No. Yakult Australia produces the ‘original’ Yakult and Yakult LIGHT. There are no plans to introduce more flavours to Australia at the current time.

But you can definitely create your own Yakult with flavours by incorporating a bottle in smoothies, milky bubble teas and more. Check out our recipe here.

To keep the goodness of the bacteria LIVE, only incorporate Yakult into cold beverages.

Why does Yakult taste sweet-sour?

During the natural fermentation process of Yakult, the bacteria produce lactic acid that makes the drink taste sour. Therefore, by adding sugar, Yakult is made more palatable and acceptable for taste.

Watch this video to know why Yakult contains sugar.

How would you describe Yakult’s flavour? Drop us a message on our Facebook or Instagram!

Thank you to everyone who has participated in the July Yakult Trivia – How Much Do You Know About Yakult?

These are the 10 winners below:

1. Leo L.
2. Angelina C.
3. Paul E.
4. Claire T.
5. Maria Z.
6. Leonie D.
7. Chie H.
8. Tracy W.
9. Angelica R.
10. Peter N.

Please come back to our website again for the August entry and a chance to win the prize below!

For more information about the monthly Yakult Trivia, please refer to the blog post here – HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW ABOUT YAKULT?

Thank you to everyone who has participated in the June Yakult Trivia – How Much Do You Know About Yakult?

These are the 10 winners below:

1. Sylvia P.
2. Kama M.
3. Anna N.
4. Celeste C.
5. Mandy C.
6. Jimmy L.
7. Felice J.
8. Scarlett S.
9. Shellie H
10. Paul E.

Please come back to our website again for the July entry and a chance to win the prize below!

For more information about the monthly Yakult Trivia, please refer to the blog post here – HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW ABOUT YAKULT?

Since winter brings with it the continuous colder weather, we tend to become less active which can impact our immunity and gut health. So, how can we take care of our gut in winter?

Keep Yourself Warm

Our gastrointestinal tract is sensitive to temperature. A cold abdomen can upset our digestive function and cause adverse reactions such as abdominal pain and diarrhea. Therefore, choosing warm drinks over cold ones and maintaining our core temperature by keeping our abdominal area warm may help reduce discomfort.

Get Yourself Moving

In winter although it is cold outside, we should keep ourselves active. Exercise is beneficial to enhance the function of digestive system. It can strengthen stomach muscle contractions that move food through digestive tract, promote the secretion of digestive juice, increase the depth and frequency of breathing, by improving the up and down movement of our diaphragm and abdominal muscles. Choosing from a variety of indoor sports or visiting a gym are good options.

Health Habits

Smoking harms the human body in many ways including the gastrointestinal tract. Smoking constricts the blood vessels in the stomach and reduces blood flow of the membrane layer of stomach, which may induce gastric disease. A moderate consumption of alcohol is also important as drinking large amounts can stimulate excessive secretion of gastric acid, which can erode and irritate our gastrointestinal lining causing pain and discomfort.

Choose What to Eat

Prioritise whole foods as fuel foods that will help keep your gut bacteria flourishing by including wholegrain bread, brown rice, oats, legumes, fruit and vegetable with skins on. In addition, a higher-fibre diet over a long period of time is a good way to help support a healthier digestive system. Individuals consuming high fibre diets are found less likely to suffer from constipation. To find out more about fibre and how it helps our digestive system, click here.

Include Probiotics

There are trillions of bacteria residing in our gastrointestinal tract. Together they help to maintain a balance in our intestinal tract. However, lifestyle factors such as poor diet, use of some antibiotics, smoking and drinking can reduce the number of beneficial bacteria in our gut and upset the balance. That’s why we need probiotics. Each bottle of Yakult contains 6.5 billion Lactobacillus casei Shirota (LcS) strains that can reach our intestines alive, increase the number of beneficial bacteria there, to help maintain the balance in our digestive system. The LcS strain has also been shown to help improve stool consistency and encourage regular bowel movement.

Reference

https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/nutrition-and-immunity/

https://www.everydayhealth.com/digestive-health/experts-why-is-fiber-important.aspx

https://www.livestrong.com/article/435030-how-does-a-poor-diet-affect-your-digestive-system/

Thank you to everyone who has participated in the May Yakult Trivia – How Much Do You Know About Yakult?

These are the 10 winners below:

1. Shellie H.
2. Paul E.
3. Caleb G.
4. Aiden D.
5. Claire A.
6. Josh C.
7. Peter N.
8. Andrew L.
9. Skye A.
10. Kirsteen S.

Please come back to our website again for the June entry and a chance to win the prize below!

For more information about the monthly Yakult Trivia, please refer to the blog post here – HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW ABOUT YAKULT?

Our intestinal bacteria have a tremendous influence on our health. Numbering in the trillions in our digestive tract alone, the important roles these microbes play in digestive, immune, cognitive, and metabolic health cannot be underestimated.

A diverse microbiota is a healthy microbiota. Ideally this means you would have a high number of different bacteria species that are evenly spread across your digestive tract. While there is no one ideal healthy intestinal microbiome composition (because everyone’s microbiota profile is unique to them)¹, researchers agree that the key to a resilient digestive system is related to a diverse intestinal bacteria population.

Simple ways to increase and support the diversity of your intestinal microbes:

Get moving

Exercise has many benefits not only for our overall health. Research shows the benefits of exercise in increasing our beneficial bacteria species and in enriching diversity in our intestines. This not only benefits your general health, but a diverse intestinal microbiota may potentially also improve your training performance!²

Embrace nature

Unlike enclosed spaces like the office or school, spending time outdoors can provide us with a much wider diversity of microbes. City dwellers, come take a walk on the ‘nature side’ and your intestinal bacteria will benefit from this. Enjoy the fresh air and get the added benefits of vitamin D from the sun too!

Nourish your microbes

Cartoon by Phil Marden 2016 from The New York Times article: Gut makeover for the new year

To encourage the growth of a wide variety of microbes, provide them with the nutrients to help them thrive.

• Include fermented microbe-rich foods like Yakult, kimchi, sauerkraut, miso, natto, tempeh, kefir, or yoghurt.

Did you know? the Lactobacillus casei Shirota strain (LcS) in Yakult not only increases the numbers of beneficial lactobacillus bacteria in your intestines but also helps encourage the growth of other beneficial native bacteria already living in your digestive system?³

• Increase the varieties of plant food in our meals. Fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and legumes contain fibre and prebiotics, which are our microbes’ favourite foods. By increasing the variety of plant foods in your diet, you help nourish different types of microbes, leading to a more diverse microbial community⁴.

Tip: Try consuming fruits and vegetables according to their season, to enjoy the different varieties when they are at their best both nutritionally and cost-wise.

• Avoid highly processed foods as these tend to be lower in fibre and prebiotics, which limits the number of nutrients your microbes are exposed to compared to unprocessed foods.

Your wellbeing and community

The scientifically proven link between your gut and the brain is known as the gut-brain axis. Stress has been shown to cause various digestive issues by upsetting the bacterial balance and reducing our intestinal microbe diversity. Therefore, taking time to rest and unwind is important both for our brain and bacteria.

Spending time in the company of people and animals that we love is also good for both the soul and our digestive system. The more people and furry friends (pets/animals) we spend our time with, the greater our microbial diversity⁵ as we are exposed to their unique microbes.

Help look after your intestinal bacteria, to help them look after you.

Which simple step will you be taking this week to increase your microbe diversity?

References:

1. Rinninella E Rinninella E, Raoul P, Cintoni M, et al. What is the Healthy Gut Microbiota Composition? A Changing Ecosystem across Age, Environment, Diet, and Diseases. Microorganisms. 2019;7(1):14
2.  Clauss M, Gérard P, Mosca A, Leclerc M. Interplay Between Exercise and Gut Microbiome in the Context of Human Health and Performance. Front Nutr. 2021;8:637010
3. Nagino T, Kaga C, Kano M, et al. Effects of fermented soymilk with Lactobacillus casei Shirota on skin condition and the gut microbiota: a randomised clinical pilot trial. Benef Microbes. 2018; 9(2):209-18
4.  Heiman ML, Greenway FL. A healthy gastrointestinal microbiome is dependent on dietary diversity. Mol Metab. 2016;5(5):317-320
5. Azad MB, Konya T, Maughan H, et al. Infant gut microbiota and the hygiene hypothesis of allergic disease: impact of household pets and siblings on microbiota composition and diversity. Allergy Asthma Clin Immunol. 2013;9(1):15

Thank you to everyone who has participated in the April Yakult Trivia – How Much Do You Know About Yakult?

These are the 10 winners below:

1. Scarlett S.
2. Ivana T.
3. Vanessa Y.
4. Airish O.
5. Fancy A.
6. Raymond C.
7. Katy K.
8. Ian L.
9. Grace P.
10. Jasmina M.

Please come back to our website again for the May entry and a chance to win the prize below!

For more information about the monthly Yakult Trivia, please refer to the blog post here – HOW MUCH DO YOU KNOW ABOUT YAKULT?