Begining Probiotics

[mhansen]

My dietician recommended I start on probiotics as my intestines are healing. Anyone have good or bad experiences with these? I found some at whole foods that list gluten free.

Thanks

mhansen

[lovegrov]

I never used them but there are other doctors who recommend exactly the same thing to all people who have just been diagnosed.

richard

[Lisa]

I took some for about four days. They did not sit well with me at all and threw them out. I believe the ones that I bought contained dairy. There are some probiotics that are dairy free, but not familiar with which brands.

[sfm]

My dietician recommended I start on probiotics as my intestines are healing. Anyone have good or bad experiences with these? I found some at whole foods that list gluten free.

Thanks

mhansen

If you have a vitamin shoppe near you, they have a gluten free dairy free "Ultimate 10" probiotic (Vitamin Shoppe brand) that my GI was very in favor of. He said it was good that I was getting all 10 strains of beneficial bacteria.

[burdee]

If you ever took antibiotics, you NEED probiotics. If you abstain from gluten and other foods allergies, but STILL have gas, bloating and/or cramping pains, you NEED probiotics. If you have constipation which is unresolved by dietary fiber, fluids or magnesium supplements, you NEED probiotics. By 'dietary fiber' I don't mean fiber supplements, like 'Fiber Con' or "Metamucil", I mean normal fruits, vegies, whole grains and nuts. If you bruise easily or have other Vitamin K defiency symptoms, you NEED probiotics.

There are effective and ineffective probiotics. Our intestines contain about 500 TRILLION bacteria. If your probiotic doesn't give you at least 100-200 BILLION LIVE organisms per dose, you aren't adding anything to change your bacterial balance. If we don't have enough good bacteria, the bad bacteria can take over or we can develop overgrowths of fungus like Candida Albicans, which is normal in small amounts, but problematic if good bacteria don't keep it in check. Many probiotic products either have limited amounts of good bacteria or they really have 'dead' bacteria. If you must refrigerate the probiotic, the organisms can already be dead when they arrive at the store or they can die en route to your house. If probiotics are not refrigerated or freeze-dried, they probably have dead bacteria. Yogurt products don't supply nearly enough variety or amounts of necessary probiotics. Obviously freeze-dried probiotic supplements are the best.

If you take probiotics and don't notice any reaction, you aren't getting enough live organisms. Effective probiotics SHOULD cause bloating, gas and even some cramping discomfort. If you take a strong dose, the good bacteria will change how your body processes food. So you SHOULD feel some discomfort. Of course, you should check the probiotic product to avoid any food allergens. However, even SAFE probiotics should make you feel uncomfortable at first. When you can take them and not feel discomfort, you probably have enough good bacteria in your gut.

I'm on my third course of high intensity probiotic treatments. I took my first course about a year ago, when the Comprehensive Stool Bacteria and Fungus test (prescribed by my naturopath) showed I had a bad Klebsiella infection. He treated that with Caprylic acid to kill the Klebsi kritters. Then I took 2 weeks of 4 capsule probiotics (freeze dried with 27 billion organisms per capsule) daily to restore my good bacteria, because Caprylic acid killed good bacteria. Afterwards for the first time in my life I had normal stools (soft and regular).

Then I got a bad food born bacterial infection (from eating meat sandwiches left out in the sun too long). When I was retested, I had ZIP good bacteria and an excess of a mild form of E. Coli. So I took priobiotics again. Unfortunately that treatment didn't complete restore my good bacteria level. I should have told my doc that I STILL felt discomfort at the end of that high intensity treatment. However I was so glad to end the discomfort from those probiotics, that I didn't mention that I never felt comfortable, which meant my gut never got enough good bacteria.

8 months later, I retested and my good bacteria were still too low. Now I've almost finished another treatment course of high dose probiotics. Although I felt extreme discomfort when I began those probiotics, I hardly experience any reaction now. This time I took 2 weeks of daily probiotic packets which contained over 170 billion live organisms each (14x170 billion). Within 3 days after beginning that treatment my stools became normal again and I stopped suffering frequent bruises.

I've read probiotics improve gut motility and produce at least half of the vitamin K we need. Before taking the last probiotic treatment, I had a high fiber diet, drank lots of liquids and took a lot of magnesium. That gave me regular, but not soft stools. I also bruised very easily. I no longer suffer those symptoms. I will continue to take daily lower dose probiotic capsules after I finish this high intensity treatment course. If I get hard stools again, I will increase that dosage.

BURDEE

[Lizking531]

Bio-K comes in dairy and non-dairy (soy) variety. The non-dairy is labeled gluten-free. They are the refrigerated small drink type. The non-dairy actually tastes way better. I found these at Wild Oats.

[jaten]

My GI put me on Flora Q when I was diagnosed with Celiac. It's over-the-counter but most pharmacies keep it behind the counter so you have to ask. Highly recommended.

[Karen B.]

I take PB-8 that I get at Whole Foods. I knew about the importance of probiotics before the Celiac diagnosis from back when I was in my 20s and went through 2 years of constant struggle with antibiotics for bladder infections and sinus infections offset by struggles with skin rashes and yeast infections.

My doc of that time laughed at the idea of taking probiotics or eating yogurt. Then a year later, he saw it in an "official" source and told me I might want to consider it. At times like that, I don't think docs give their patients enough credit for impulse control. :-)

Anyone having a problem with recurring bladder infections, I read (may have been People's Pharmacy) that taking extra vitamin C increases the acidity of your urine and discourages bladder infections. Haven't had a problem with recurring infections since then.

[jmd3]

There are effective and ineffective probiotics. Our intestines contain about 500 TRILLION bacteria. If your probiotic doesn't give you at least 100-200 BILLION LIVE organisms per dose, you aren't adding anything to change your bacterial balance. If we don't have enough good bacteria, the bad bacteria can take over or we can develop overgrowths of fungus like Candida Albicans, which is normal in small amounts, but problematic if good bacteria don't keep it in check. Many probiotic products either have limited amounts of good bacteria or they really have 'dead' bacteria. If you must refrigerate the probiotic, the organisms can already be dead when they arrive at the store or they can die en route to your house. If probiotics are not refrigerated or freeze-dried, they probably have dead bacteria. Yogurt products don't supply nearly enough variety or amounts of necessary probiotics. Obviously freeze-dried probiotic supplements are the best.

8 months later, I retested and my good bacteria were still too low. Now I've almost finished another treatment course of high dose probiotics. Although I felt extreme discomfort when I began those probiotics, I hardly experience any reaction now. This time I took 2 weeks of daily probiotic packets which contained over 170 billion live organisms each (14x170 billion). Within 3 days after beginning that treatment my stools became normal again and I stopped suffering frequent bruises.

BURDEE

Which probiotics do you take? The highest probiotic I have seen is 35 billions cfu's.

I am currently taking a probiotic that has about 15 billion cfu - I was taking one in the morning - didn't seem like enough - I have added one in the evening as well. I definately got the rumblings, and gas pains, the good and the evil bacteria fight is now happening...I guess I wasn't taking enough.

What do you think about the enteric coated??

[burdee]

I just finished a 2 week treatment course of HLC Symbiotic Intensive from Pharmax for people who are especially deficient in good bacteria. This is a freeze dried product which contains 125 billion bacteria per sachet (packet). I mixed each packet with water and took that before my evening meal. I noticed immediate bloating and gas discomfort which decreased during the 2 week treatment course. I notice dramatic improvement in regularity and bruising after a few days of taking that product.

I have also taken the Pharmax HLC high potency probiotic capsules which contain 8 billion highly viable good bacteria per capsule. Those are also freeze dried but refrigerated at my naturopath's office. I took 2-3 of those capsules daily after taking the intensive treatment.

BURDEE