You’ve learned about the potential health benefits of probiotics, and are now ready to incorporate them into your daily routine. We’re thrilled that you’re taking this step, and are here to support and educate you through this journey.
One question that we get often from those just starting out with probiotics is “what is the best way to take probiotics?” Some people worry that taking probiotics on an empty stomach is harmful, and others are not sure if their supplements can be taken after a meal, or worry about the detrimental effects of stomach acid on probiotics. Parents often ask us if they can mix probiotics with juice or food, to make it easier to give some to their children.
Here we’ll discuss the questions we get about the best way to take probiotics.
Taking probiotics before meals
Sometimes it is preferable to take probiotics before and after a meal, especially if the meal is heavy.
This is especially true with products like Digesta-Lac, with the goal of optimizing digestion. An important component of Digesta-Lac is Natren's Lactobacillus bulgaricus LB-51 super strain. These helpful bacteria move through your digestive tract with the food you eat, during digestion.
What’s important to understand is that everyone’s microbiota is unique – just like everyone’s fingerprints are unique. When you take your probiotics depends on your individual microbiota composition in terms of getting optimal results. That’s why Natren is the only company to allow you to customize your probiotic routing based on your individual needs.
Natren’s products were made to be effective and convenient. You can take all of Natren’s probiotics together or alone before a meal. Some people particularly like the combination of Digesta-Lac, Megadophilus, and Bifido Factor taken together right before a meal with unchilled filtered water. The benefits of this combination include the potential to optimize digestion, improve absorption, maintain a positive mood, and support immunity and proper elimination to keep you and your intestinal tract humming.
Food interactions with probiotics
If you read Natren’s probiotic labels, you will notice we sometimes have notes about not taking a probiotic within 2 hours of consuming herbs or garlic. We give you these instructions because garlic, herbs and spices have certain properties that may somewhat lessen the effectiveness of your probiotics.
For instance, one study showed that when taken with cinnamon, a strain of probiotics lost some potency. It’s believed that this change is due to cinnamon’s antibiotic properties. While cinnamon can be healthy, it’s best not to ingest it at the same time as your probiotics, so as not to risk dilution of the strain and the benefits you’re looking for. If you are taking antibiotics, always take your probiotics two hours after antibiotic use.
Protecting probiotics from stomach acid
You may hear people say that you should take probiotics in a way that will most protect them from acid your stomach produces.
While this is a legitimate concern with lower quality probiotics, Natren is committed to delivering probiotics that work with your body.
For example, our very popular Healthy Trinity, uses a proprietary process named after our founder, Natasha Trenev. The Trenev Process® allows for an unmatched level of survivability and stability for the beneficial live bacteria in our supplements. How is this possible?
Our innovative technology uses an oil-matrix system which encapsulates each strain of beneficial bacteria to keep them separated as well as almost completely protected from the gastric juices (acids) of the stomach.
Healthy Trinity has the only true oil matrix in the world. Natren is so committed to delivering the highest standard of probiotics, that they go above and beyond in every aspect. Natren also uses a 2-piece hard capsule which allows for better protection of the probiotics.
Many other companies use a soft gel capsule which contains too much moisture to allow the probiotics to thrive. Instead, with a soft gel capsule the probiotic potency is drastically reduced, substantially diminishing any benefits for the user. This is not a concern with Natren probiotics.
Natren’s production methods allow for the probiotics to travel into the intestines, where they are most needed. In the intestines, bile from the upper gastrointestinal tract breaks down the protective coating and allows the healthy bacteria to do their job.
This coating is one reason Natren probiotics are such a good choice. Beyond the coating, our clients appreciate knowing that all of the super strains found in Natren probiotics are bile resistant.
Did you know we have approximately 27 feet of intestinal tract? Lesser probiotics could easily be rendered useless early in the digestive process, if they cannot survive bile. However, Natren’s probiotics are produced so that the probiotic bacteria can best serve your complete digestive process.
Mixing probiotics into food or drinks
While most adults and some children can swallow a pill without any problems, there are times you may wonder if it’s ok to mix probiotics with food or a drink. You can mix your probiotics like Life Start, Megadophilus, Bifido Factor and Digesta Lac with liquids like milk, water, or non-acidic juice.
Alternatively, these probiotics can be stirred into applesauce or yogurt for easy consumption. At Natren we have probiotics available that are appropriate to give as early as an infant’s day of birth. For infants, you can make a thin paste from the probiotic and formula or water.
You do not want to mix probiotics into acidic or hot beverages, since this may compromise the healthy bacteria. For example, do not use orange juice or coffee. Instead, apple juice or grape juice are better choices.
Importance of taking probiotics regularly
It may be tempting to forgo parts of your routine, like taking probiotics, if you’re feeling healthy. But one important aspect of benefiting from these healthy bacteria is to take them with regularity.
It is not as effective to wait until you’re having digestive problems, or feeling under the weather, to start taking probiotics again. You would not brush your teeth sometimes, and then forget for a few months.
Similarly, it’s best to find a probiotic routine that works for you, and stick with it. Don't forget 40% of your dry weight fecal matter is bacteria. You lose a lot of your internal bacteria colonies every time you have a bowel movement, so replenishment is essential for ongoing health.
Probiotics on the go
While it’s not difficult to bring probiotic pills with you if needed, sometimes it’s a relief to have the convenience of products like our Gastro-pH. This probiotic is available as a small strawberry flavored wafer that you can chew anytime you need it. Gastro-pH helps protect from occasional upset stomachs or indigestion.
While it’s not recommended that you bring the whole bottle with you, you can take the wafers you may need that day. Our recommendation is to put the wafers in a tin, or wrap them in aluminum foil to use for the day.
This is important in protecting the good bacteria, ensuring they are viable when you ingest them. You may see some probiotics claim they are “shelf stable”. Do not be fooled by these claims. Probiotics need rigorous temperature control to truly survive.
You may have questions about what probiotics to take, when to take them, and how to optimize your health. The best place to start learning is at the Natren website where you can read about probiotics here and shop for the ones that best fit your needs.
Rest assured that Natren guarantees the potency of every strain in our products, and we take the utmost of care in ensuring your supplements arrive to you in the best condition.
We stand behind our probiotics 100%, and are committed to providing you with the safest and most effective products for your health. Don't forget, you can safely determine a layering system to take our probiotics to best suit your needs.
You can take all of Natren probiotic products at any level safely; our knowledge and commitment to research means we are providing you with products we know are safe and effective at any level.
Probiotic products from Natren are the foundation of your good health because they keep your operating system - your digestive tract - humming.
