Probiotics Questions

[Penny4]

Hi, Do any of you take probiotics? I am considering them just to help with overall health, digestive health, etc, but a little overwhelmed at the options out there.
I'm 46, trying to eat healthy and lose weight, but in general overall good health, aside from a touch of depression.

Can anyone give a general overview of what to look for in a probiotic? What to avoid? Recommended brands? Expected results?Etc?
I just searched on them at cvs . com and there were 419 results

Suggestions and input welcome!

Thanks!

[Pax]

I came home from Mexico five years ago with salmonella, e-coli, and a third one I can't remember. The result is a totally screwed up GI system, so I take probiotics "as needed" now, usually every few months when I start getting belly aches, then I take a month or two course of them to set things right. I read everything I could find, tried following recommendations, tried several kinds, but after a while realized it was like trying to figure out which brand of anything is better than the other.

What works for me is the Phillips Colon Health brand. It's not cheap but I know it works since the awful stomach aches stop.

Hope you find something that works well for you.

[Crankin]

You could save a lot of money by eating a cup of Greek yogurt daily.
I just get suspicious of getting stuff from supplements, when you could get them nutritionally.

[rebeccaC]

Most over the counter probiotic supplements are not regulated by the FDA (meaning the advertising and what’s written on the label could be more marketing rather than truth)….so yeah getting recommendations from those like Pax who are using them is the best route.

When I looked into it a couple of years ago the better delivery method: supplements or food, didn’t have much science behind it. I do know if the immunity of the intestinal environment is compromised there are lots of food ways that will quickly send billions of good microbes into the bacterial struggle going on….. my grandmother used goat’s milk fermented with kefir (excellent for enzyme deficiency conditions too) for lactose intolerance and that worked really well for her.

For just overall digestive health as you wrote you want... probiotic-rich foods are in my normal diet…sauerkraut, active yogurt etc etc….Kimchi, Miso and especially Kombucha (an acquired taste thing though) are my favorite ways of getting them….even adding things like a good sourdough bread can help.

eta..+1 on sylvia's recommendation on seeing a doctor about frequent digestive problems.


biking and good food ftw

[Sylvia]

Do you already have digestive issues? If not and you just want to keep your digestive system healthy, then some of the recommendations already mentioned are probably fine. However, if you are experiencing digestive problems, I'd recommend seeing a doctor first.

That said, there are some really good probiotics out there, but they aren't cheap. I like the Renew Life brand, they come in varying strengths and seem to be priced accordingly, so get the level you need. I recently came down with a case of cellulitis and was put on Clyndamycin. I was flat out told, this medication would give me diarrhea, but the pharmacist told me to take this medication with food and to take a probiotic an hour or two after. So I would take one of these an hour to two hours after, and it definitely helped keep things under control. I had some loose stools but as long as I remembered to take them, it didn't get worse than that.

In addition to probiotics, you might also consider digestive enzymes. But once again, what brand and how strong you need something like this to be, would probably depend on your general digestive health. If you are having issues in this area, I would suggest seeing your physician first.

[ny biker]

I know someone who had severe symptoms from ulcerative colitis some years back, and she found Align probiotics to be extremely helpful.

Last year a friend was taking some strong antibiotics to counter a lingering infection. A relative who's a nurse has told me about the importance of taking probiotics when antibiotics are prescribed, to avoid side effects as well as a potentially serious secondary infection (c.difficile), so I asked her what specific brand of probiotic supplements my friend should be taking, and she actually said yogurt would be fine.

I generally don't have digestive problems as long as I avoid large amounts of one type of food that I have problems with (cooked tomatoes, as in sauces or soup). A few years ago I tried taking Align for a month or so and didn't find any noticeable affect from them. These days I eat a lot yogurt, both Greek and regular, and don't worry about supplements.