Probiotics

[Icanttakethisanymore]

I’m slightly overwhelmed by the range of probiotics on offer! Does anyone have any recommendations for really good probiotics? Also, it would be great to understand what is good about them / different to less good ones. Thank you!

I use them short term.

The last brand used was Zoe the gut shot made with Kefir milk. 6 days worth berries taste got a bit monotonous to put it politely and was glad to reach end of the pack, but I think it did what I hoped.

I really like getting actimel when on offer, their tropical ones are the nicest. They also do a sugar-free range.

I’ve also tried Biomel in the past. I remember buying a bulk load 😊 that is plant-based if I recall.

Oats are said to be just as good.

Thank you! I’ve bought kefir in the past and I know oats are a good prebiotic (I think rather than probiotic). What I struggle with is telling the difference between something that is generally good for gut health etc. and something that will actively repopulate your microbiome (with the right type of bacteria) when it’s been damaged (ie after antibiotics). I think things need to be ‘live’ to do this so I’m not sure if any type of a tablet would work, for example. But there are lots of probiotic tablets so maybe I’m wrong (or maybe they just don’t work very well!). I suspect it’s a pretty poorly regulated area so I’m a bit sceptical to be honest. I’m in danger of disappearing down a rabbit hole on this topic I think 😂

My GP recommended the brand optibac, she said that they have the most research supporting them. I take one daily. I’ve also had antibiotics recently (several courses).

Thank you! That might be a good place to start then, alongside the food based suggestions like kefir / yogurt etc.

Live yogurt/kefir in the morning and a yakult before bed for me, whether or not I am taking antibiotics (which is rare). But I had H pylori and just feel better in general by sticking to the above. Some of the probiotic tablets are so very expensive and more or less the same ingredients are in the stuff I mentioned.

A nurse recommended Symprove to me. It is expensive but I thought a few months would probably do the trick for me and don't intend to use it long-term.

I also eat Kefir yogurt and porridge.

I only ever have them after antibiotics my gp said get yakult but I personally prefer the taste of actimel and it still did the job of settling my stomach. I suppose it depends what your wanting from it

I've thought about taking probiotics particularly because I have to permanently take antibiotics. I do eat fermented foods but am not convinced that most probiotic bacteria we take orally can survive the acidity of the stomach to reach the parts of the gut where they're needed.

I wonder if prebiotics and eating a very wide ranging diet based on plants is the way to go.

I can also recommend Optibac. I took the ones specifically for during antibiotics and my stomach was a lot better than I was expecting. Normally antibiotics cause me stomach upsets.