Evidence: Reasonable Possible Benefits: Low Safety: Low
TABLE OF CONTENTS
What are probiotics?
Probiotics are a type of bacteria commonly used as a dietary supplement for improving gut health and digestion. While these types of bacteria have many important functions in the body, taking probiotic supplements with only a few strains of bacteria can cause an imbalance in other types of bacteria and do more harm than good. This article is about the main benefits of probiotics, their potential side effects, the best time to take them, and more.
Possible benefits
All of the potential benefits mentioned below are dose-dependent. As with most other supplements, there is a sweet-spot dose that allows you to get most of the benefits without causing meaningful side effects or tolerance buildup in the body. We will discuss the best dosing protocol later in this article.
Major benefits
Recovery from an antibiotic cycle – People often lose as much as 90% of gut bacteria during an antibiotic cycle. Probiotic strains of bacteria can help the gut microbiome grow back to baseline. The supplement can also reduce gastrointestinal problems, such as diarrhea, related to antibiotics.
Minor benefits
Improved digestion – Probiotics can help break down food and make it easier for the body to digest it. The bacteria also enhance the absorption and utilization of vitamins and minerals from food.
Improved immune health – The gut microbiome plays a critical role in keeping one’s immune system healthy.
Reduced symptoms of IBS – Probiotics can reduce the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome, a long-term disorder of the large intestines that causes stomach pain.
Possible side effects
The side effects below are dose-dependent. The risk for them increases (often linearly but sometimes exponentially) as you increase the dose. Some of the side effects only apply to very high doses.
Imbalance in the gut microbiome – There are anywhere from 300 to 1000 species of bacteria in an average human gut. By only taking a few strains of bacteria, you may be causing a bacterial imbalance, which can lead to a variety of unwanted consequences. This is why it’s often much better to get bacteria from natural sources, such as fermented foods, rather than probiotic supplements.
Bacterial overgrowth – Some people already have too much bacteria in their gut, which can lead to SIBO or other problems related to bacterial overgrowth. Taking probiotics would worsen these problems. However, people with an overgrowth of bacteria like H. pylori may still see a benefit.
Infections – People with indwelling medical devices or compromised immune health due to gut barrier problems may develop infections after taking probiotics. This side effect is rare in other groups of people.
Allergy – Some people are allergic to certain strains of bacteria but this is relatively rare.
Gastrointestinal side effects – Probiotics can cause bloating, gas, and diarrhea in some people.
Toxicity – While acute toxicity is extremely rare, taking high amounts of this supplement could lead to chronic toxicity and cause health problems over time. Regularly taking high doses can also cause the body to develop a tolerance to the supplement. To prevent chronic toxicity or the buildup of tolerance, staying below 20 billion colony-forming units (CFUs) in a day is best unless you have a great reason to take more.
Contamination – Contaminated supplements are uncommon in the USA and other well-regulated countries. However, if you wish to buy products from China, India, or other countries without strict regulations, beware that the supplements may be contaminated. Either way, you need to choose the brand you order from wisely. Always read through some reviews for the specific product before you buy it. The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) has the power to regulate dietary supplements but can only do so after they have been on the market for a while. That’s because supplement companies are not obligated to announce to the FDA when releasing a new product. The FDA has to discover the product and test it for potential impurities, which can take a lot of time. During that time, the supplement can be sold on the market even if it’s impure. Also, supplement companies can change their manufacturers without announcing it to the FDA.
Who should not take probiotics?
You should probably avoid taking probiotics if you:
are willing to eat fermented foods instead
have SIBO or other problems related to bacterial overgrowth
experience a severe adverse reaction after taking the supplement
are pregnant or breastfeeding (while it can be safe to take this supplement during pregnancy or breastfeeding, it can put some unnecessary risk to the child)
don’t have a great reason to take probiotics (they are likely to do more harm than good in that case)
Who will benefit the most?
You should consider taking the supplement if you:
recently went through an antibiotic cycle
How much probiotics should you take?
The sweet spot dose for total bacteria in probiotics typically ranges between 5-20 billion colony-forming units (CFUs) daily for most people. This amount should provide most of the benefits without meaningful side effects.
The higher end of this range usually provides slightly more benefits in the short term. If you plan to take this supplement for a longer time (multiple months or years), the lower end is probably a better way to go since it is safer, and you would develop tolerance faster if you were to take higher doses.
The upper safety limit for this supplement is not well-established. To stay on the safe side, don’t take more than the recommended dose unless you have a great reason to do so. Higher amounts may cause problems if you take the supplement for a prolonged period.
Like most other supplements, it is best to cycle probiotics and take about two days off weekly to reset your tolerance. That will allow you to keep getting the benefits in the long term.
Best time to take probiotics
The best time to take probiotics is with a meal, as this helps protect the probiotic bacteria from the acidic environment of the stomach.
Whether you take the supplement in the morning or the evening does not make much difference. Both options are fine so feel free to experiment.
Interactions
Antibiotics People often lose as much as 90% of gut bacteria during an antibiotic cycle. Probiotic strains of bacteria can help the gut microbiome grow back to baseline. The supplement can also reduce gastrointestinal problems, such as diarrhea, related to antibiotics.
Where to buy probiotics?
In most countries, Amazon is the best option for ordering probiotic supplements. They offer some very affordable products backed by many positive reviews. Also, you can choose from a wide range of brands without having to search through other markets on the Internet.
Some brands display the dosage per serving instead of per pill or capsule. Therefore, you may accidentally buy something less potent than you intended. Do not fall for this marketing trick.
FAQ
Like most other supplements, it is best to cycle probiotics and take a break from them for about two days per week to reset your tolerance back to baseline. That will keep your body sensitive to the supplement and allow you to keep getting the benefits in the long term.
All of these options are fine. The two most important things to consider are the price and dosing. Powders are almost always the cheapest form. However, you may need a highly accurate scale to dose them correctly (preferably 0.001g). You can get one for as little as $20 from Amazon. Dosing the powders also takes time which can add up over months or years. The disadvantage of capsules is that they are often made of bovine gelatine, which rarely comes from ethical sources.
Yes. Whether you take the supplement in the morning or the evening does not make much difference. Both options are fine so feel free to experiment.
This supplement should not become harmful once it exceeds the expiration date. However, it can lose potency over time. Keep this supplement in a cold, dark, and dry place so it remains as potent for many months or even years.
Yes. Perhaps the main problem with taking a few strains of probiotic bacteria is that they may cause an imbalance in the other strains of bacteria. It is best to stick to regular doses and take the lowest effective dose possible.
The half-life of probiotic supplements with Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium is about 140 minutes. This supplement gets metabolized within 10 hours after you consume it. However, most of the effects of this supplement are cumulative, so they mainly happen in the long term rather than acutely. Therefore, the half-life of this supplement isn’t very relevant in practice.
Probiotics may acutely improve your gut health and digestion shortly after you start taking them. In the long term, you must take the supplement for about 2-4 weeks to begin noticing most of the benefits.
Most probiotic supplements on the market are vegan-friendly. If you buy the supplement in a capsulated form, beware that the capsules often contain animal-based gelatin. Instead, find a brand that puts its products into cellulose capsules.
The supplement should not interfere with fasting in any significant way. However, you still want to take the supplement with food as it may absorb better.
References
Most of the information in this guide is based on scientific research that can be found and verified in the PubMed medical library. We highly encourage you to use the library to verify anything you read in this article. We excluded from consideration studies that are either confounded or have a high conflict of interest.
