Probiotics are useless?

This study shows that most subject simply pooped it out and there was no sign of it in their guts:

https://abcnews.go.com/Health/proof-probiotics-work-study/story?id=57643353

"After 25 healthy volunteers ate a generic probiotic with 11 strains of “good” bacteria, they all had probiotic bacteria in their stool, which the research team expected. But when doctors did the endoscopy to evaluate their intestines, they found that probiotics had only actually “stuck” and grown in a few people."

I personally take probiotics occasionally for gas control and it works. It doesn't have to stick to my gut, as long as it helps generating less gas while it is in my system, I am happy with it... Don't take my word for it, if you have beer farts, just take probiotics before drinking and report back. You and your lady friend are welcome!

Interestingly, another article about the same study mentions only 15 volunteers, so we have a problem of either small sample size or faulty reporting:

https://www.newscientist.com/articl...are-mostly-useless-and-can-actually-hurt-you/

But they also came to another interesting conclusion:

"The outcome was striking. For a start, the microbes found in faeces were not representative of those that had colonised the gut. “Relying on faecal samples as an indicator of what goes on inside the gut is inaccurate and wrong” says Elinav."

In plain English, relying on shit samples is shitty at best.

"The research also showed that while probiotics colonised the gastrointestinal tract of some people, the gut microbiome of others just expelled them. There was no way of telling from their stool sample which category people fell into. “Some people accept probiotics in their gut, while others just pass them from one end to the other,” says Elinav. They found that the probiotic colonisation patterns were highly dependent on the individual. That tells us that the concept that everyone can benefit from a universal probiotic bought from the supermarket is empirically wrong, he says."

In plain English: people are different.

But what is alarming that it can be dangerous:

"Probiotic bacteria readily colonised the gut of everyone in the second group after antibiotics had cleared the way. However, the researchers were surprised to find that this prevented the return of the person’s normal microbiome for up to six months. “The probiotics very potently and persistently prevented the original microbiome returning to its original situation,” "

 

I remember an oncologist telling me the same last year discussing a fecal transplant for a lady who had had chemo. He said that the gut has a very powerful mechanism to prevent colonization.

The fecal transplant did help, perhaps it's composition gets through the bouncer. I'm not mixing it with yogurt and drinking it though

 

I bet my milkshake tastes better. It includes a heaping tablespoon of ground flax seed, and two heaping tablespoons each of oat bran and wheat bran. I know that all fiber is not necessarily prebiotic but, until I checked recently, I had no idea that these three ingredients are considered to be very prebiotic. The only two other ingredients in my milkshake are a rounded teaspoon of unsweetened baking cocoa powder and 1.5 cups of skim milk. I have two of those a day.

 

Feel better? Better than what? You felt bad before? Most of you must feel absolutely overwhelming everything you add now you feel better & better with each add. You have rockets coming out your ass now??

Baseline level of overall well being should be good. If starting less than this, you did something wrong,. Not what you added, probably what you deleted.

 

Now you are treating a medical condition. Lot different than the claims to "amp" your physiology.

You know, "I felt good, but now I feel great!" It's BS, till proven otherwise.

yogurt is mostly harmless I guess so.

 

most of us that haven't taken a course of antibiotics or had diarrhea have the gut biome critters it's just that they are starved. Best thing is to take prebiotics as in Metamucil, or just buy the ingredient, it's incredibly inexpensive in bulk; psyllium husk fiber.

Psyllium has been used in the Middle East for centuries by people that are constipated, it's some great stuff

 

I don't think you can just throw probiotics down there without doing some other stuff. A healthy bowel needs to see dark leafy greens, beans, and fruits. These things helps the right bacteria grow. In other words, if one is eating cheeseburgers and expecting to fix their GI flora with yogurt, it probably isn't going to work.

 

I take psyllium husk every day in the morning with a smoothie. It works wonders to lower cholesterol and keep you regular. I find that, after about two months, I begin to get a stomach ache when I eat. At that point, I take a good probiotic (Floristor, I think the name is) and the stomach aches go away. When I asked the doc, he said this was because the psyllium husk soaks up everything in the intestines - including good flora. So replacing it every so often is a good thing.