Probiotics?

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Kindlesprite
Kindlesprite Posts: 36 Member
in Food and Nutrition
How do you guys feel about a diet high in probiotics? I eat yogurt/take a pill/drink kimbucha every day and I feel like it probably makes a difference. Then again, maybe placebo effect? What do you guys think?

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  • rankinsect
    rankinsect Posts: 2,238 Member
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    While in theory probiotics could be useful - the gut microbiome is very important - there's really no evidence yet that the actual products being marketed are even the right species of organism, or that they can successfully colonize the intestinal tract. Most organisms that can thrive in food (the fermenters, etc) are not at all adapted to our intestinal tract, which is a vastly different environment.

    For that matter, we haven't even identified what a healthy microbiome looks like. We know there are thousands of species of bacteria, yeast, and other single-celled organisms, but we haven't identified them specifically, we can't grow most in a lab, and we don't know how each fits in to our health.

    In 40 years, I expect probiotics will be exceptionally useful. Right now I think we're putting the cart before the horse - we don't yet know enough to create the right probiotics, so we're consuming random organisms whose only similarity to our gut biome is being single-celled, and hoping for some kind of effect.
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
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    I love Kefir. I suspect part of its digestibility is the action of the bacteria before I drink it.
  • HeidiCooksSupper
    HeidiCooksSupper Posts: 3,831 Member
    edited October 2017
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    What @rankinsect said is right on the money. It's regular medical practice to eat things like yogurt after antibiotics to start repopulating the gut but that's about as far as it goes. Things like extreme diets that lack variety and cleanses are bad for gut flora. If you kill off your gut flora, the only solution may be a "fecal transplant" which is just what it sounds like it would be.
  • friend2cptsolo
    friend2cptsolo Posts: 29 Member
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    Well I do agree with Rankinsect MOSTLY.... but saying we are putting the cart before the horse is off the money. FROM my personal wieghtloss story Probiotics have made huge impacts. I do absolutely believe that I had a Yeast overload situation in my gut and I have successfully "treated" that with high colony count probiotics. But This may have worked well for me..... It may not have the same impact for others... this I totally understand.

    So I tell everyone this..... that scratches their head when I try to tell them about the possible benefits to just taking a probiotic pill..... JUST TRY
    Look a cheap bottle of these things cost like 10.00 and the high end stuff can be about 30.00 to 40.00 for a months supply but that is a small price to pay if it elevates your gut. For me it was a no brainer.
  • rhtexasgal
    rhtexasgal Posts: 572 Member
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    I have made probiotics a part of my grocery budget because it makes a huge difference for me. As someone who is in remission from ulcerative colitis, probiotics helped heal my gut and it keeps it healthy. I use Garden of Life probiotics found in the refrigerated section ... the one I buy contains 34 strains of bacteria at 100 billion count, the highest I can buy over the counter. I discovered if I slack off too long from taking it, my gut starts acting weird. Because I went through major hell with the UC, I never, ever want that pain again so I do probiotics daily. I also drink my own kombucha and eat fermented veggies I make like kimchi and pickles. I will use kefir to make homemade ranch dressing and dip too.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,070 Member
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    I figure it's safe to consume the probiotic foods humans have been eating for hundreds to thousands of years, and that it might possibly be beneficial. Given that I find the ones I eat regularly very tasty, plus nutritious for their calories, they're a good choice for me.

    I eat yogurt, kefir, and ACV most days, and fermented veggies (mostly kim chi and sauerkraut) multiple times a week. Fermented sriracha and miso are more occasional.

  • hedwardsb
    hedwardsb Posts: 201 Member
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    rhtexasgal wrote: »
    I have made probiotics a part of my grocery budget because it makes a huge difference for me. As someone who is in remission from ulcerative colitis, probiotics helped heal my gut and it keeps it healthy. I use Garden of Life probiotics found in the refrigerated section ... the one I buy contains 34 strains of bacteria at 100 billion count, the highest I can buy over the counter. I discovered if I slack off too long from taking it, my gut starts acting weird. Because I went through major hell with the UC, I never, ever want that pain again so I do probiotics daily. I also drink my own kombucha and eat fermented veggies I make like kimchi and pickles. I will use kefir to make homemade ranch dressing and dip too.

    I use the same brand. I started taking them as a preventive measure when a staph infection landed me in the hospital with surgery and iv antibiotics followed by weeks of oral antibiotics. I didn’t think my usual yogurt could ward off the yeast. Five months later, I avoided a yeast infection and think I have less bloating in general than before I started taking them.
  • Evamutt
    Evamutt Posts: 2,318 Member
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    Our oldest son has had stomach issue for months. was off & on on antibiotics, had all kinds of tests done including endoscopy & colonoscopy & finally found he has "rot gut" layman's term where he doesn't produce enough good bacteria, so he learned how to make his own kumbucha & has felt normal ever since
  • briannaherexxoo2
    briannaherexxoo2 Posts: 7 Member
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    Evamutt wrote: »
    Our oldest son has had stomach issue for months. was off & on on antibiotics, had all kinds of tests done including endoscopy & colonoscopy & finally found he has "rot gut" layman's term where he doesn't produce enough good bacteria, so he learned how to make his own kumbucha & has felt normal ever since

    What kind of stomach issue if you don't mind me asking?
  • Strawblackcat
    Strawblackcat Posts: 944 Member
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    rhtexasgal wrote: »
    I have made probiotics a part of my grocery budget because it makes a huge difference for me. As someone who is in remission from ulcerative colitis, probiotics helped heal my gut and it keeps it healthy. I use Garden of Life probiotics found in the refrigerated section ... the one I buy contains 34 strains of bacteria at 100 billion count, the highest I can buy over the counter. I discovered if I slack off too long from taking it, my gut starts acting weird. Because I went through major hell with the UC, I never, ever want that pain again so I do probiotics daily. I also drink my own kombucha and eat fermented veggies I make like kimchi and pickles. I will use kefir to make homemade ranch dressing and dip too.

    Same here. I have IBS that likes to flare up preiodically, and their Primal Defense Ultra seems to keep it from happening too often. Whenever I decide to try and go without it for a month, I always end up with another couple weeks of digestive issues that usually end up resolving themselves when I finally break down and buy another bottle.
  • ghudson92
    ghudson92 Posts: 2,061 Member
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    I have IBS and find that eating 'gut friendly' foods and taking a probiotic to be beneficial, especially where bloating and cramps are concerned. If you want to learn more about the gut, I highly recommend Dr Guilia Enders' book entitled 'Gut', it is informative and evidence based.
  • omerfkhan
    omerfkhan Posts: 43 Member
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    My life is totally changed after starting kefir and kimchi

    Kefir worked like a charm and kimchi ended all bloating issues
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
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    What kind of difference are you looking for??
  • aeloine
    aeloine Posts: 2,163 Member
    edited October 2017
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    Lol at the kombucha buzz though. It's a real thing.

    I eat Greek yogurt, pickles, sauerkraut, and kimchi on the reg..... keeps me "regular," too, if you know what I mean.
  • Joel_518
    Joel_518 Posts: 35 Member
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    aeloine wrote: »
    Lol at the kombucha buzz though. It's a real thing.

    I eat Greek yogurt, pickles, sauerkraut, and kimchi on the reg..... keeps me "regular," too, if you know what I mean.

    Well done!!! Sauerkraut....my fav

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