# Very bad reaction to probiotic supplement



## mike leone (Oct 10, 2011)

HEy one week ago i started a probiotic powder supplement and took it for 3 days. Since then i have had no appetite lost over 20 pounds and have had constant gas and watering mouth as i feel i will vomit often.The supplement contained high amounts of inulin which might be the culprit, or one of the probiotics doesn't agree with me. I was just posting this to see if anyone else has any experiences like mine and how they resolved it.My options now are to take an antibiotic and try to kill all the bugs in my gut, or wait a few weeks and get in to see a doc who can take stool samples and work my problems up. (i have seen my GP who didnt seem that concerned.) Or I can try to take fermented foods and populate my gut with some of the more common types of probiotic.I really have a problem with the term "probiotic" because there are so many of them and its practically impossible that all of them have been PROVEN to be harmless and/or beneficial to a host.


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## jmc09 (Oct 5, 2009)

Do you have ibs c or ibs d?There are only a couple of probiotics that have been proved to actually help ibs such as bifidobacterus infantis,VSL 3 may help too and another one that i cant remember that sounds like plantus or similar.Have a look at these as these have actually been proved to help but not cure ibs.


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## mike leone (Oct 10, 2011)

Yes but i was just refering to my problem in terms of the reaction to the probiotic. My symptoms were under control before i tried them. I think it could have been the inulin in it im just looking for someone that might have some insight, or similar thing


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## md6727 (Jan 10, 2011)

mike leone said:


> Yes but i was just refering to my problem in terms of the reaction to the probiotic. My symptoms were under control before i tried them. I think it could have been the inulin in it im just looking for someone that might have some insight, or similar thing


Hi Mike,Finally, someone other than myself, who has had a bad reaction to probiotics. I have tried several kinds and it really doesn't matter. They don't agree with me. They send me straight to the bathroom, and it takes my system several days to recover. Just wanted to let you know of my own experience, and that you're not the only one.


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## annie7 (Aug 16, 2002)

no probiotics didn't agree with me either. i have constipation problems and all the probiotics i tried gave me terrible pain and bloating--even after a month's trial (thought i'd get over the bloating after that time--the herx reaction they call it) and they didn't help the c either--made it worse actually. i don't know a whole lot about inulin but i remember reading that probiotics with fos in them can cause a lot of gas, bloat and discomfort.also i found this info on inulin from livestrong: "FOS stands for fructo-oligosaccharides, and these sugars linked together in chain formation. Inulin is a popular version of an FOS that is often added to foods with probiotics" http://www.livestrong.com/article/154239-side-effects-of-fos-in-probiotics


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## Aurametrix (Mar 30, 2011)

Inulin feeds not only *good* bacteria. Klebsiella, for example, responsible for urinary tract and soft tissue infections among other things, loves inulin and grows very well on it. Clostridium does not mind munching on inulin either.True, there are too many *probiotics* and you need to know which ones are good for you and which ones are not.


mike leone said:


> HEy one week ago i started a probiotic powder supplement and took it for 3 days. Since then i have had no appetite lost over 20 pounds and have had constant gas and watering mouth as i feel i will vomit often.The supplement contained high amounts of inulin which might be the culprit, or one of the probiotics doesn't agree with me. I was just posting this to see if anyone else has any experiences like mine and how they resolved it.My options now are to take an antibiotic and try to kill all the bugs in my gut, or wait a few weeks and get in to see a doc who can take stool samples and work my problems up. (i have seen my GP who didnt seem that concerned.) Or I can try to take fermented foods and populate my gut with some of the more common types of probiotic.I really have a problem with the term "probiotic" because there are so many of them and its practically impossible that all of them have been PROVEN to be harmless and/or beneficial to a host.


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## breakaway (Mar 18, 2011)

Which probiotic did you take?


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## TVgirl (Sep 16, 2009)

I can not handle inulin. I get very sick. My tummy gets all crampy and I get gas and diarrhea and bloating. It could very well have been the inulin. I would talk to your doctor about what to do next. It might just correct itself if you wait it out by not feeding them any more inulin. If you are still feeling ill after a few days of stopping them, then you should see a doc and maybe stool sample culture might be needed. I really don't agree with that inulin stuff !!!


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