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Bringing health into the lives of others isn’t anything new to Billy and Tina Anderson of Just Thrive Probiotic & Antioxidant.  What is new is their approach.  Over the past 20 years, Billy and Tina have been entrepreneurs in the pharmaceutical industry and have helped build a thriving pharmaceutical business.  But over recent years they have seen the over use and over prescribing of pharmaceuticals and have witnessed firsthand the industry’s focus on treatment of illnesses rather than prevention of illness.  This is not the way this couple approaches health and living with themselves and their three children.  Instead, the Anderson’s have focused on living a more natural lifestyle by eating real foods, getting plenty of rest, living an active lifestyle and supplementing with important natural supplements.  They avoid over the counter and prescription medications whenever possible and opt instead for more natural ways to treat a cold, runny nose, ear infection, etc.  

The turning point

The turning point in their career came when they witnessed a beloved family member go from one prescription medication to ten medications in a matter of a few months. Watching this family member’s health continue to deteriorate, all while more and more drugs flowed through their body was enough for the Anderson’s to decide they needed to focus on a career that prevented disease rather than just treated disease. This new path was more in line with who they were and how they were living their own day-to-day lives, a life of natural health and prevention, not treatment.  In the quest to find the perfect product, they came to learn that over 70% of our immune systems are found in the gut. They also followed numerous well-respected doctors that were discovering that most diseases originated in the gut and that our guts are largely responsible for our overall health.  The Anderson’s quickly decided that they wanted to focus on repairing and keeping our digestive systems as healthy as possible.

Lesson about probiotics

Shortly after deciding on their mission, the couple learned about probiotics (the good or friendly bacteria that live in your gut) and came to realize how crucially important probiotics are to a healthy lifestyle.  Probiotics support proper digestion, help absorb beneficial nutrients in your food and, since over 70% of our immune systems are in our guts, are vital in our overall health and well-being.   They also learned that our friendly bacteria experience a daily assault that lead to digestive and system health issues.  The use of fluoride enriched water, antibiotics, excessive sterilization, processed foods, artificial dies and flavorings, household chemicals, environmental pollutants, alcohol, smoking, etc. are all factors that disrupt the proper growth and population in the digestive system.

Do your homework

Over a course of several months, Billy and Tina experimented with different brands of probiotic supplements and surprisingly, didn’t see any effects or benefits.  They also studied numerous articles and publications on probiotic reviews and testing and quickly came to learn that many probiotics on the market today simply do not survive the manufacturing process and even fewer survive the harsh conditions of the stomach.  They became aware that many companies require their probiotics to be kept in a refrigerator and were shocked to learn that refrigeration was needed to keep the probiotic strains viable and stable on the shelf.  Common sense told them that if a probiotic cannot survive on a store shelf at room temperature, how could it possibly survive the acids of our stomachs and the 98 degree temperature of our bodies?  The answer was that they simple don’t.

Based on the World Health Organization (WHO) definition of a probiotic, if a probiotic does not survive the passage through the stomach to reach the intestines “alive” it is not a probiotic.   After this discovery, the Anderson’s quickly set out to find a REAL probiotic, one that could survive the acidic onslaught of our stomachs, as well as the 98 degree temperature of our bodies.  Also extremely important to Billy and Tina was to find a probiotic that nature designed to survive, not one that was unnaturally coated to help it try and survive —one that our ancestors would have also been exposed to, as their evolution has shaped our DNA and our body functions.  And… they found one!

Discovery!

The Anderson’s found a group of probiotic strains called Bacillus spores.  Bacillus spores have been used in the pharmaceutical and agricultural industries in Europe for over 50 years – and as a result, these bacillus strains’ safety and efficacy have been studied and proven time and time again.  Together with Dr. Simon Cutting of London University Royal Holloway, a world-renowned expert on probiotics, they were able to obtain the exclusive rights in the U.S. for these powerful and effective strains of probiotics.  After finalizing the perfect formulation, Just Thrive Probiotic & Antioxidant was born!

The strains used in “Just Thrive” survive the harsh acid of the stomach 100% - and it does this naturally.  Not only does “Just Thrive” stand apart from 95% of the probiotics on the market because it makes it to your digestive system alive, but “Just Thrive” does something that no other probiotic does – it produces RDA (recommended daily allowance) levels of carotenoids (antioxidants) right at the site of absorption, therefore also surviving the harsh acidic environment of the stomach.  Given the levels of antioxidants in this probiotic strain, they have essentially created a whole new supplement category – probiotic/antioxidant combination product!  It’s also all natural, gluten free, dairy free, vegan and paleo.

The most rewarding part of this journey has been receiving the emails and feedback from customers that have experienced better health and dramatic relief from various symptoms.  They have customers who experienced relief from debilitating GERD; other customers with Crohn’s and colitis that have experienced relief. One customer told them that as long as they keep these quality ingredients in Just Thrive, he would stay on it for the rest of his life because he experienced such dramatic relief from his Crohn’s symptoms.  Another customer’s 6 year old daughter experienced relief from eczema on her eyelids.  They have had numerous customers tell them they now experience regularity for the first time in years and less bloating.  Other customers who have had great relief from acid reflux.  The list goes on. 

It has been particularly rewarding to provide a product that allows people to regain their lives back, to help keep families have less visits to the doctor’s office and to give people the opportunity to THRIVE! Both Bill and Tina are very grateful for this incredible journey and are especially grateful for their family of customers.

Photo by courtesy of marin at freedigitalphoto.net; http://thriveprobiotic.com/