Blowing Money On Probiotics?

[Pyro]

I've been using probiotics for probably about two years now, and have seen okay results. But then again can't be sure, because you don't really know what it's like to not take a medicine when you've been taking it constantly. Anyway they seem to at least do something and I'm actually afraid to go without them seeing how awful my gut can be even when using two per day. Along with acidophilus pearls, NOW acid $ bifidus caps (using currently, going back to the pearls), there is also natto which is a kind of rotten soybean covered in stringy snot-like phlegm. This seems to help a great deal, but like the rest is pricey being $1 per dose.

Though after ordering acidophilus pearls, an add came up for Dr. Ohhira's Essential Probiotic formula which is actually even more expensive but has tons and tons of reviews on Lame Advertisement. I'm torn between being jaded from frequently spending too much money on supplements and good food hoping that something will finally help, and being drawn in by the hype that promises to actually reinvent your intestine's countryside.

Does anyone have an opinion on this? Has anyone had great success with Dr. Ohhira's or any probiotic for that matter? I hate having to constantly pay for my own health like this and feel like while probiotics help the companies pull us along for a ride by conveniently selling a high price item that you NEED every day for it to work. True we can make our own, but most of us here are dairy intolerant and can't cultivate the yogurt/sour cream stuff that homemade people usually do.

[mamaw]

Probiotics ---- not all work for us celiac & again its a prefence as to what our intestinal tract will accept & use to help heal. I don't think there ia a one fits all in probiotics. I use several in rotation. I do use Dr Ohirra's professional probiotics probably more than the others. I get them from Ecology Health site ( A crohn's site) shipping is free if you order several. expensive yea...

I use the pearls, align ( without much difference) & I also have Dr Ron's liquid probiotics. It is hard to swallow, pricey & I don't get much from it either. I was hoping for more results.

I do drink Kombucha tea which I think helps me more than anything. It does require learning to drink it but now I love it.....

I also use Digest Gold enzymes before meals. Chobani yougurt, yummy

,

hth

mamaw

[sandsurfgirl]

I'm leery of fancy supplements. The cynic in me thinks they know that people taking them are sick and often desperate, turning to them because the MD's have failed. They prey on that desperation.

I won't spend more than about $20 on a bottle of probiotics. It's bacteria. How much can that really cost? I say stay with the cheaper ones.

You made me hurk with the description of the gross one! LOL

[ravenwoodglass]

Have you tried eating foods that are high in probiotics like yogurt with live cultures or saurkraut? I find those work just as well for me. You may also want to look into the possibility of other intolerances, soy and dairy being the most common if you are still having gut issues gluten free. Another possibility if you are still suffering digestive issues is that you are getting CC'd somehow. Do you have a gluten free house or do you eat a lot of processed foods? If the answer is yes you could also try going with whole unprocessed foods for a while till you are feeling better then adding back in your fav's one at a time and seeing if they agree with you.

[JNBunnie1]

I personally use PB8 for a probiotic, it's gluten-free and cheaper than most, and has 8 strains instead of just one or two. I do shell out for Dr Ron's cod liver oil, but it's the best one on the market, so there's good reason for that. When it comes to probiotics, it's all about what works best for you, not what's most expensive or whatever. So if you need more different strains, or if just yogurt is enough, it all depends on your system.

Also, Pyro, have you considered coconut milk yogurt?

[Pyro]

Do you mean the stuff from Purely Decadent? It gives me really bad gastric problems and so does the coconut kefir. Hate to be melancholy but it all seems really hopeless. No matter what I do, I've been having really bad times.

[JNBunnie1]

Do you mean the stuff from Purely Decadent? It gives me really bad gastric problems and so does the coconut kefir. Hate to be melancholy but it all seems really hopeless. No matter what I do, I've been having really bad times.

Er, no, I was thinking you could make your own? If you've had coconut milk, straight, with no problems, then maybe homemade coconut yogurt would help. I'd guess any stuff in the store would have some additives that might piss off your system.

Have you tried making homemade bone broths and sauerkraut? Two very healing foods, to my understanding.

[Pyro]

I do my own soups sometimes but no on the sauerkraut. Maybe I'll look into this coconut milk thing for future purposes.

[kayo]

I never used probiotics until recently and I am using PB8 (gluten-free, soy free, dairy free). It really seems to be working for me. My middle is soooo quiet, non-rumbly, not bloated and I have significantly less gas.

You just gave me a good idea about making my own coconut yogurt. The one from the store is too sweet. Never considered making my own... hmmm, thanks!

[sunnybabi1986]

I've been using Align, a probiotic, for almost a year now. It's helped relieve occasional diarrhea and nausea, and I've stopped taking it a few times, only to start getting diarrhea again within 3 days of stopping

I can't say I love paying for it each month, but wow, do I have my life back. I can eat small amounts of dairy and I don't have to worry about diarrhea from stress, etc. anymore. For me, it's totally worth it and not blowing my money. But each person is different! For some, Align doesn't do much at all. For others, like me, it's been a lifesaver.

[afreeclimber74]

I can't imagine anything worse than having to eat natto. That stuff is on my list of foods that I'll never eat again, by choice.

I took probiotics here and there at different times before I knew I had celiac. I used to make my own kimchi and kombucha.

The only thing I ever took that made a difference was the Digestive Advantage for IBS, which I started taking at the same time I experimented with gluten-free. Those pills had me feeling better within 24hrs and I am so glad I found them.

[sandsurfgirl]

Do you mean the stuff from Purely Decadent? It gives me really bad gastric problems and so does the coconut kefir. Hate to be melancholy but it all seems really hopeless. No matter what I do, I've been having really bad times.

HUGS We all go through bad times. It will get better! Hang in there.

[Pyro]

Thanks for the support Sandsurf! I was feeling pretty lousy when I put that up. Sometimes recovery can be even more of a pain. When you know you have just a little ways to get better it feels really frustrating to have those last difficulties to put up with.

As for the coconut milk yogurt I already got some going (20 hours ago) after figuring out how easy it really is. There was some organic coconut milk on sale so it was basically begging to be made. Though I'm not really sure what's going on. So far there aren't very many bubbles and it's hard to tell if it's yogurt or not because it still tastes nice and sweet, indicating that there are still sugars there. And it's hard to tell if the amber-y taste is a result of fermentation or just the taste of the honey. Either it needs more time, the bacteria was dead, or it's actually just some fine yogurt.

[ciavyn]

I can't imagine anything worse than having to eat natto. That stuff is on my list of foods that I'll never eat again, by choice.

I took probiotics here and there at different times before I knew I had celiac. I used to make my own kimchi and kombucha.

The only thing I ever took that made a difference was the Digestive Advantage for IBS, which I started taking at the same time I experimented with gluten-free. Those pills had me feeling better within 24hrs and I am so glad I found them.

According to Wiki: "Nattō can be an acquired taste because of its powerful smell, strong flavor, and slippery texture." I don't know about anyone else, but I can't wait to try it!

[Pyro]

I actually like it now. At first it is kind of gross, but when you eat it for awhile it becomes more welcoming especially for its effects. And mixing in the mustard packet that usually comes with it makes it taste much less like old man stink.

[Pyro]

The yogurt is done and is excellent. Thank you very much for bringing that to light.

[JNBunnie1]

The yogurt is done and is excellent. Thank you very much for bringing that to light.

Hey! I'm SO happy something is working well for you. And that it's delicious. I hope it turns out to make your tummy happy rather than angry like the storebought stuff. As far as I know with yogurt, it's yogurt once it's not watery milk anymore. Once you have sludge, it's yogurt, right?

[Pyro]

When it tastes a little fermented and is a little sludgy I think that means it's yogurt. Don't take my word for it, though, I've abandoned all things yogurt/cheese/pastry when the intolerances were eliminated and I was sick of getting messed up from the replacements.

Again, a massive thank you to whoever pointed this stuff out. If everything continues to go so well with it, which it should, this is probably the biggest contribution to my culinary life in years. Definitely very major. Something that serves as a sauce, snack, extra probiotic during meals and is cheap (eliminating the need to buy all kinds of expensive vegan dressings), tastes great and is easy to tailor, and very easy to find is really a massive help. Especially since when I live on the west coast I always buy young thai coconuts for the water but have no real use for the meat. Midwest is $2.50 for a serving of coconut water and $2 for a can of coconut milk, and west coast has fresh whole coconuts for 99 cents... So yeah this is really special for me.

[JNBunnie1]

When it tastes a little fermented and is a little sludgy I think that means it's yogurt. Don't take my word for it, though, I've abandoned all things yogurt/cheese/pastry when the intolerances were eliminated and I was sick of getting messed up from the replacements.

Again, a massive thank you to whoever pointed this stuff out. If everything continues to go so well with it, which it should, this is probably the biggest contribution to my culinary life in years. Definitely very major. Something that serves as a sauce, snack, extra probiotic during meals and is cheap (eliminating the need to buy all kinds of expensive vegan dressings), tastes great and is easy to tailor, and very easy to find is really a massive help. Especially since when I live on the west coast I always buy young thai coconuts for the water but have no real use for the meat. Midwest is $2.50 for a serving of coconut water and $2 for a can of coconut milk, and west coast has fresh whole coconuts for 99 cents... So yeah this is really special for me.

That was me! I rock.

[Pyro]

Oh it was! Haha sorry, too lazy to go check. Again, thank you thank you thank you. It's hard to convey how much you appreciate something on a forum, and I really mean that this is very awesome for me.

[missy'smom]

Pyro,

Could you share more about this homemade coconut yogurt? I have made yogurt before with milk and used a bit of commercial yogurt to get it started. What did you use for the starter? and what brand of coconut milk did you use? I can't have the commercial coconut yogurt because of the sugar content. Does this homemade coconut yogurt taste good unadorned?

[Pyro]

Yes it tastes really good plain.

Making it was really easy, and IMO a lot of the things they mentioned were unnecessary (sterilizing and heating). All I did was take a can of Thai Kitchen Organic Coconut Milk

http://www.wellnessgrocer.com/images/3762807950_d.webp

, Poured it in a freshly cleaned glass jar, squeezed in what looked like 1-2 tablespoons of raw honey, mixed it up, and then dumped in a probiotic capsule. First I did half the capsule, then it seemed like nothing was happening so the rest went in. Still nothing seemed to happen, so I cut open an acidophilus pearl and stirred that in. This was the only complicated part, and either I was too impatient or the NOW probiotics were actually dead for some reason. During all that it either stayed on the counter by the oven when it was in use, or inside with the light on with an occasional quick blast of heat just to make sure it was toasty enough. That's it! All I did was pour in a can, squeeze in honey, and toss in a capsule. This morning I poured another can in with some more honey and the old batch should be enough to inoculate the rest. Sterilizing probably is a good idea but I like to experiment with keeping things as simple as possible.

Just to re-emphasize the cost savings: If you live on the west coast you can get fresh young coconuts for $.99. Which I would recommend because the water alone really helps with frustrating bouts of anemia and electrolyte imbalance. Then the meat can be made into the yogurt, replacing store bought, and making one probiotic capsule into a farm in a jar. THEN the yogurt can be eaten typically or made into all kinds of condiments with just a bit of spices and blended herbs/veggies which will taste better and replace the rip-off $4-8 a piece vegan dressings from places like Whole Foods and co-ops. Hate to bring up money so much, but it makes a really big difference especially now since I really need to stop using up my cash on groceries.

[Bobbijo6681]

My boss forwarded this website to me yesterday and I thought I would share here.

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