Acidopholous/Sac B. Question?

[trintiybella]

My doctor wants me to take acidopholous. The guy at vitamin shoppe said it it the same as Sac. B. - just another name for it. What other proboitics wouid be considered to be acidophous? Thanks

[chubbermommy]

Acidophilus is a bacteria; sacc. B is a yeast - both are probiotics.

 

My ND has put DS on both bacterial probiotics and the sacc. B. But I'm not sure what other probiotics would be called 'acidophilus' except the actual lactobacillus acidophilus. Sorry, that wasn't much help, was it?

[MomWithOCDSon]

There are many, many strains of probiotics; acidolpholus is one that is more common and can be found in many food sources, as well as supplements: yogurt, kefir. The upside of acidolpholus is that it is readily available and generally inexpensive. The downside is that this organism is readily killed off by antibiotics, so if you're consuming abx, this is not a great probiotic for you.

 

Meanwhile, sach b (a beneficial yeast) is impervious to antibiotics, so you can take it simultaneously. A number of other probiotic strains can also hold their own against abx, including lactobacillus gg (commonly packaged as Culturelle).

 

Unfortunately, those guys at the Vitamin Shoppe, while well-intentioned, don't always know as much as they think they do!

[ktdommer]

I personally take a prescription strength probiotic for ulcerative colitis ( which I don't have) called VSL#3 DS. It is amazing!

I order from Swanson's online Jarrow Sacchromyces Boulardii+ MOS. it has 5 billion per capsules. We each take 4 a day away for abx.

[WorriedDADNMOM]

They are NOT the same thing........Correct from many though.The way our Integrative Pedi told us Probiotics promote healthy gut flora and can be taken all the time daily. It is especially important to take it when on abx, especially the broad spectrum, ex Zithromax it needs to be taken as many hours apart from the abx. Also, when on broad spectrum abx, yeast infections can become an issue and therefore Probiotics supplemented with Sacc B(which is a good yeast that can be take at the same time as abx) is a good plan to eliminate potential dysbiosis that can occur on long term broad spectrum abx.

 

For what it is worth, we recommend really only what our Integrative DAN Pedi recommends:

 

http://klaire.com/probiotics_cat.htm

http://kirkmanlabs.com/CategoryKirkman/154/Probiotics/

 

Hope this helps!!!!

[awilliams74]

I am sorry if this is a redundant question, but I've read so much it's all starting to blur. DS 10 has been on antibiotics for almost a full year since initial PANDAS diagnosis. We're in a fairly good place although not completely healed (80%?). He takes prophylactic Keflex twice daily, omega 3s and an over the counter probiotic, along with CBT biweekly. I'm trying to figure out which probiotic would be best for him (current one is almost gone). It appears ProGut and Florastor pop up quite a bit in the PANDAS blogs, literature, etc. Does anyone have an opinion? Should they both be taken together or only one? I feel a little lost and feel this is a very important piece of his healing. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

[MomWithOCDSon]

Hi AWilliams --

 

Florastor (or sachrymyces boulardii) is a good one because it can stand up to antibiotics and not be killed off, even if you dose concurrently or close together; it's a beneficial yeast which is especially helpful for combatting diarrhea.

 

Otherwise, there are other probiotics available at the typical grocery or pharmacy that can also survive antibiotics, like Culturelle (lactobillus gg). The only thing to avoid, really, are the straight acidolpholus probiotics (the "pearls," etc.) because antibiotics will kill this bacteria strain.

 

We combined sach b. and a multi-flora supplement that we got from the Vitamin Shoppe (the brand is Renew Life) while DS was on antibiotics and had good results that way. There have been some reports of kids who do not respond well to sach b, however, so if you decide to try it, I would make just that one change for a bit and see how your child responds before adding anything else.

 

Good luck!

[awilliams74]

Nancy - Thanks so much, I picked up florastor today and will start next week after the current runs out. I feel like we're getting close and I just want to try and find something to keep pushing us in the right direction. I'll give it a try. Thanks again.

 

Angela

[bigmighty]

There are generics for florastor that are much less expensive. Also, best price for florastor brand is probably costco website - if it is good for you and you plan to continue taking long-term - can get expensive

[awilliams74]

Very good to know, thanks! It all adds up very quickly, 2 prescription meds/month, zyrtec daily, MVI with omega 3s (that's expensive!), a good probiotic, and current CBT therapist is cash. Sadly I know those expenses are small compared to what others are paying and what we could be paying in the future. Thanks again.