So my naturopath has me on probiotics

Yep, day 1 starts today, I'm taking "Metagenics Ultra Flora Plus DF" probiotic and "Metagenics Glutagenics" to help with my intestinal lining, so far I don't have any side effects. Any thoughts? Feedback? Known symptoms? My naturopath thinks I have a yeast allergy. Is it a good idea to be on probiotics at the same time as costcosteroids such as azathiprine and budessonide? My doc said it was okay as long as I space them out a few hours apart.

Hi Superbloop:

I'm aware that some people have noticed helpful effects of probiotics with IBS, but I'm not sure about IBD (it's on my list of things to find out when I have time!). Please report back and let me know if you find it helps!

Do you have a pharmacist you can talk to about combining the supplements with your meds?

Cheers!

Will do, I'm not sure, they say don't take it around the same time as your other medications because they will conflict but as for supplements I am unsure, I believe it's best just to space it out so there aren't any issues.

I am on VSl, high doses and it works pretty good. I dont take mine with meds or supplements, just juice or water. How many probiotic count does yours have???

I also just started some probiotics. These are new....Maximum strength viazorb, IBS, lactose intolerance, maximum absorption and PH balance (reading off bottle label) I tried looking it up on the net and only got vidazorb, so this must be really new. Darn small print www.medizar.com

These seem to be working nicely or me and I will buy another bottle even though they are on the expensive side.

Hi Super -

I was on a heavy course of Metagenics products for six months - Ultra Flora IB, Bifoviden ID, Glutagenics, Endefen (powder), UltraInflamX (powder). Also Florastor which is not Metagenics but another mfr.

I am not sure if it was the steroids or these products that gave me 6 really good months of feeling great. I stopped them because they were so expensive and I found they didn't help heal my inflammation. I am now off of them and on a lower dose of pred... and I feel like shit!

I am going to start back up on them again to see if they make me feel better.

I did not have any side effects or noticable problems with any of these products, and I was taking several times the recommended dose each day.

The only pain they gave me was in my checkbook.

Good luck - hope they help! - Amy

Probiotics can take awhile to actually start working when the gut is so badly out of whack. So give it some time. There are no contraindications with probiotics they are just healthy flora. It's best to take them on an empty stomach and about 30 minutes before you eat anything.

The probiotics are an overall good thing to have but they won't cure candida (yeast infection) by themselves if you have it. There are some good diets and herbal supplements that can help candida.

Good luck.

I've done a ton of research with the abundace of time I've had lately. I am a fan of pro biotics now - just remember there are different strains of pro biotics. Some better for crohn's then others. Healthy Trinity is what I am leaning towards. I believe the companies owner, made the company after his son was diagnosed with crohn's.

My gastroenterologist suggested Culturelle, so I started taking them this morning. We'll see how they work.

I see the different brands of probiotics advertising which has the most bacteria in each capsule but considering the rate at which bacteria multiply I can't figure out why 5 billions cells wouldn't (over a few hours) be just as good as 10 gazillion. The biggest problem, however, is that none of them can guarantee there are any living bacteria in their pills. A couple hours of high heat in transit could kill them all.

Timmytoogood said:

My gastroenterologist suggested Culturelle, so I started taking them this morning. We'll see how they work.

I see the different brands of probiotics advertising which has the most bacteria in each capsule but considering the rate at which bacteria multiply I can't figure out why 5 billions cells wouldn't (over a few hours) be just as good as 10 gazillion. The biggest problem, however, is that none of them can guarantee there are any living bacteria in their pills. A couple hours of high heat in transit could kill them all.

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Healthy Trinity is stored and transported cold. There are a few other brands that are stored cold too. This is the one I use.

I've had a gut ache every day since I started on these probiotics but gut aches are not unusual and I've only been taking them for four days.

Kari mentioned it can take a while to see the benefits. For those taking probiotics, if they worked for you, how long did it take to see the benefits and what were the benefits? My gastro doc said she has heard anecdotal stories from other doctors of Crohns symptom remissions.

I've been taking one called florastor since I had c diff a while back. It helps with diarrhea if you take about 4 a day. My doctor just started me on restora about a week ago too, don't know if it's had any effects yet. I could probably use a bit more good flora in the ol' gut myself.

I have been trying out probiotics recently. Haven't noticed a difference, but my Crohn's symptoms have been getting increasingly worse lately, so this might not be the best time to judge the effects of probiotics! Am going to stick with it for a while and see what happens.

Probiotics. I'm not sure. I've sort of been off and on for awhile. Then again I just started seeing an integrative medical doctor who specializes in crohn's and he told me that they don't do any good if they aren't refrigerated. He also said there are a few that do more for crohn's than others.

:shifty-t:

____________________________
Diagnosed: Crohn’s December ‘09
Gastritis August ’09, TMJD 1992
Surgeries: 1-terminal ileum removal
Treatments: Current- pentasa
Past- pred. aciphex, ranitidine
Other: Multi-vitamin, calcium,
digestive enzymes, probiotics,
fish oil, and ginger