Best Probiotic

Short answer, NO.

This is highly individual, just like diet. What is useful for one can be terrible for another.

Align is good, but I would not say it is better than any other. However, one good thing about it is that it is shelf stable and does not need to be refrigerated. But, that does not mean you get to store it on your dashboard in the sun either. You need to keep it at controlled room temperatures.

When I am trying out a probiotic, I stay on it for a full 2-3 months before deciding it is worth the bother or not. The first month or so you are adjusting to it, so you may have extra gas or no improved function at all. So, don't go trying one for a week or two and moving on to another.

In general, there are no yogurts that are as useful as the concentrated capsules, but that does not mean you should not eat yogurt, since it is a healthy source of nutrients, plus it adds extra probiotics to your system.

Jan

The one probiotic often prescribed for maintaining remission from pouchitis is vsl#3ds. Presumably because it has shown promise in clinical studies for this purpose.

Does that make it the best? No idea. I doubt we will have anything approaching a definitive answer until more research is done and probiotics are regulated.

I've tried many, including VSL#3DS, which I kinda thought helped, but just never knew for sure.

I recently started making my own SCD (Specific Carbohydrate Diet) yogurt, which is fermented 24 hrs. It's explained that 24hr SCD yogurt has a concentration of 3 billion cfu/ml which means that in just a cup of Yogurt you'll get 708 billion beneficial bacteria and that's about 50 times more than that claimed for a typical 15 billion capsule. http://www.breakingtheviciousc...urt-is-so-important/.

I don't know how these bacteria were measured (!) but I started making my own, went off antibiotics nearly a month ago, and have been doing really well so far except for a few blips the first week or so.

It's definitely worth checking out.

I have no doubt that homemade yogurt can be superior to anything on the store shelves.

The main thing I have gleaned from the reading I have done is that the number of probiotic cells is only one aspect. The type of probiotic is another. But the main thing is that effectiveness is strain specific. So one acidophylus strain is not the same as another. I guess that is how manufacturers manage to patent their brand. Anyway, it has to survive the stomach acid and digestive enzymes before it can colonize in the gut.

So, unless there is a standardized yogurt "starter," I'm not sure how it works for most people. Still, it's worth trying I think. One question though, what do you do when you are traveling?

Jan

Jan, that's what's so confusing. How do we know which probiotic strand(s) are the best? Or is it just as you say, one type works for one where it may not be beneficial to another?

So I'm taking probiotics, but I've got no clue if they're making a difference or not. My situation got a lot better after my take down about a month out, but that could be completely independent of the probiotics. In any event, my RN told me to start out with "probiotics with bifidobacterium and lactobacillus, 3-5 billion colonies." I found something I think matches that (it's "colon health" brand), and I take it daily. I can't vouch for it, but because things are going well, I won't stop taking it because I don't want to risk complications when things are going so well.

Exactly Lu! There just is not enough data out there. VSL#3 has become the recommended one, because it actually has some studies done with pouchitis and IBD, whereas most others have not. And, even VSL#3 is not 100% effective for everyone. Some people cannot even tolerate it.

What I did was look on PubMed for studies on probiotics in regard to IBD, didn't matter to me if it was UC or Crohn's. There wasn't much out there and what was there, was either small studies or not very conclusive. The problem is that with probiotics being unregulated supplements, there is no consistency. You can have the exact same lactobacillus in a hundred different products, but they really are not the same, because they are different strains. One strain may die in the stomach while the other does not. The one that lives still may not have what is needed to stick to the bowel wall when it gets there.

So, you really cannot just buy whatever is on the shelf and think it will work because it has X-Y-Z probiotics. But there is no harm in it either (other than to your wallet). It is hard to prove a negative. "I didn't get sick, so it must be good." Could just be coincidence, especially when you are dealing with IBD, which is very random with spontaneous relapse and remission.

So, if your doctor has a brand that he recommends, it is worth trying, because he probably read something about it. Otherwise, just pick one and try it and see.

Jan

Polpyps and Jan...so true, How do you really know it's working unless you have your parallel self NOT taking the probiotic.

Jan thanks for the explanation and study. I have heard of VSL#3, but know it' s prescription and expensive. If I had chronic pouchitis issues or I knew it would help with gastritis (which is a different issue), then I'd look into it. So guess for now, it's just picking one and taking it for a few months.
Thx. Appreciate the feedback.

Only the VSL#3DS is prescription only. The regular VSL#3 you can by without a prescription. But, it is still expensive.

Jan

Jan, I haven't traveled since making yogurt; will probably just use probiotic capsules when I do travel.

I mostly use yogourmet as a starter, which contains Lactobacillus bulgaricus, Streptococcus thermophilus, Lactobacillus acidophilus. I also use plain dannon yogurt and add an opened capsule of my iflora as starter for the 2nd half of the batch. I have both of these yogurts in my fridge at all times. They are really tasty, and the only costs are the milk and the starter.

I don't mean to proselytize, but would just present this as an option for those who have the time and desire to try something other than capsules.

I take Culturelle in the mornings and DanActive in the evenings. I usually have a cup of yogurt for breakfast too.

I tried Acidophilus, since I can't afford VSL3. I quit using it too after about 3 weeks. I noticed no improvement at all. And to make things worse, flu like symptoms started after I began using Acidophilus.

Homemade yogurt sounds great. So far I just haven't had the gumption to do it. But everyone in the family likes yogurt. I make a big pot of homemade soup every week, so my fridge is pretty full most of the time. My husband and I eat soup and salad for dinner most nights.

Still, I might look into it. Good tips!

Jan

I have esophogitis (sp) and gastritis. I was never told to take a probiotic for that by any of my GIs. Prilosec and then a sublingual previcid is what made mine go away, I even had an ulcer that was cured by it. Since I got C.diff I can't take those anymore but I can take Zantac.

I've been taking Culturelle for years but I've no idea if it's doing anything at all. Try Chobani yogurt a few times and let us all know if it changes anything. It may be responsible for a 300% improvement in my pouch efficiency but then again it may have done nothing.

Hi.

I've decided to give Align a try so have bought a couple months worth to start and will go from there. I have one question though...is it ok that Align is not a refrigerated probiotic?

Yes, as a matter of fact, that is one thing that makes it better than some of the refrigerated ones.

Probiotics that require refrigeration are more likely to get damaged somewhere along the line if they are not stored properly. So being "shelf stable" is a plus as far as I am concerned. Sure makes it easier if you like to travel!

Jan

Interesting way to look at it. I always thought the opposite...that if it is not refrigerated, that it will lose some of the effect. Good to know that Align is a plus since it stays stable.