Probiotic supplements

My acupuncturist recommended the Jarro brand and instructed me to change the kind of probiotic or probiotic combo approximately every 30 days so that I get a wide range of probiotics and so that they can build up to healthy levels. I've read similar recommendations on the internet, but each body is different. So I'd check with your doc to see if they have any specific instructions for you.I attempted to try the Blue probiotic brand but I never received the shipment. They refunded my money easily after an email but never responded to me about what the shipment problem was. So I kinda got a shady vibe from them. If you buy over the internet, buy from a reputable site so that you can be sure of what you're getting. <br>

Welcome to Connect @jk26conklin,

I'm tagging @concernedmtnmom, @doron, @wljs, @kathyannyarborough, @ptfitzy, @michellecrcrn, @tessie, @decosmo, @windwalker, @jillnc, @irene5, @decosmo, who have all discussed probiotics, and I hope will join in with their suggestions and insights.

@jk26conklin, we'd like to get to know you better; could you share a bit more about yourself?

Thank you for your reply. This is the first time I have heard about changing probiotic supplements but it really makes sense to do that. I was taking Align when I talked to my Dr. and she said just keep taking it. In the last few months I have switched to Fortify made by Natures Way and thought it was working better than Align. The last bottle (glass) I bought was broken and some people I talked to had the same problem so the search is on again. I do not want to worry about broken glass. I will look into the Jarro brand you mentioned.

I am a retired female and in my early 70's. Have always been very active and healthy. Eating healthy is a priority with me. Exercising and staying fit. My gut problem started about five years ago and I had my gallbladder removed. Shortly after that, about 4 months I started having severe runs with every thing I ate. I started eliminating foods while the Dr. took all the necessary test. I ended up eating only rice and drinking rice milk. Dairy and soy were two of the bad guys. Lost a lot of weight. Since then I have added back more foods. Dairy, soy, beans, pumpkin, banana, squash, some nuts, fatty meat to mention a few are the ones I stay away from. My gut is not back to where it used to be but I am getting used to a new normal. Probiotic supplements is important to me. I have found it confusing to say the least to try to pick one that's going to work for me. So happy that I signed up with the Mayo Clinic Web and I will be reading all of your inputs.

I take a probiotic and a prebiotic and I also drink Kefir. The probiotic I take has to be refrigerated and I order it from the Internet. For this reason, I don't use it in the summer. It is VSL#3. Other probiotics I have taken are Three Lac, Raw Probiotics and Triple Probiotics. The Three Lac and VSL#3 are expensive. You can Google Probiotic Review and get a large number of them rated. The prebiotics I have taken are Inulin and Candidate. I guess they are working because I don't have any yeast overgrowth at the present time which I have had in the past. I like the idea of taking different ones in order to get a variety of ingredients. Of course, you can eat yogurt but read the label to be sure it has live cultures.

There is a big movement to soil based probiotics and I take prescript assist which has done wonders for me.

I'm seeing a lot of comments about the brands of probiotics that people are using, and I just wanted to clarify my earlier response in light of the others.  unless a brand only carries one strain of probiotic, then you can have a wide variety of probiotics within each brand. Here's a site that can give you a general overview of the different strains of probiotics. https://probiotics.org/strains/. But if you look at the ingredients on each box of bottle, it will tell you all the different strains inside. So when I said that my acupuncturist recommended i vary my probiotics to get a healthy buildup, she meant making sure I was covering all the different strains.  I also vary the combo of strains. For example, the Jarro-Dophilus EPS has 25 Billion Cells Per Capsule and includes 8 strains. Another Jarro product may include more strains at a lesser concentration. And there's one strain-Saccharomyces Boulardii - that I took by itself.Since I'm not privy to the inner workings at the labs that produce the probiotics, I vary the product to make sure I don't end up choosing one that is not as effective. It can be confusing and concerning trying to make these decisions when the products aren't regulated by the FDA. I don't want to say it's a crap shoot, but you have to do your research on the brands and get input from ppl who are familiar with the companies that make them.  Good luck!

I use the Shaklee brand. They have a prebiotic and probiotic system that work great together.

@doron How has your probiotic helped you? Thanks.

I take it along with a bunch of other supplements, and no longer need to take anti acids after 10 years of constant heartburn. I also reduced my bloating, but that comes back when I have a lot of stress and drink. I do the following to deal with autoimmune, MP, and gerd with great results:

1. I am on the Paleo autoimmune protocol
2. I take the following gut supplements as recommended by Kris Kresser (here is the link: http://my.chriskresser.com/the-supplement-guide/). I take the list for digestive disorders and the list for autoimmune.

I have never taken medicine for my conditions other than Zantac and Prilosec for gerd, but I am off those since sarting the supplements.