# accuflora cause gas



## pi-ibs-d (Jul 26, 2009)

i recently supplemented my daily regimen of florastor and immodium with accuflora probiotic and experienced a significant increase in gas and flatulence. i quit taking the probiotic two weeks ago, but the problem has not disappeared. has anyone else had this experience with probiotics? any advice?


----------



## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

Some probiotics have a prebiotic in them (FOS, inulin, etc) and that can increase gas for some people even though in theory it helps the probiotics grow. The probiotics won't make gas from it, but all the other gas producing bacteria eat it as well and can cause gas.Sometimes it is just the wrong strains and how they interact with the native flora just doesn't seem to work. If it has no prebiotics you may just need different blend.Usually if things haven't settled down in the 2-3 week mark it just isn't the right product for you. Some people never find the right product, but some people will if they try a couple of different brands.Googled it for the ingredients and Maltodextrin is a prebiotic so could be the problem and florastor doesn't have this in it.Things should settle back down once you stop, but you might want to eat a low flatus diet if you've got some gas producing bacteria going really good right now. http://www.endowsec.com/pated/edtgs12.htm


----------



## Moises (May 20, 2000)

Kathleen,You know I always appreciate the generosity with which you share your knowledge with everyone here. This time, you have me completely confused. I thought a prebiotic was a substance which we can neither break down, nor absorb, in our digestive tracts, but which can be a source of energy for the so-called "good-bacteria." The idea, I thought, was that by taking prebiotics, we can alter the population mix of species and strains in our intestines.My understanding of maltodextrin is that it is a carbohydrate, the bonds of which are very weak, so that we can break it down into simple glucose molecules with great ease. I thought that maltodextrin was the primary ingredient in many so-called Elemental Diets, the purpose of which is to nourish people who have a diminished capacity to break their food down into a simple (elemental) absorbable form.If my understanding of prebiotic is correct, and my understanding of maltodextrin is correct, then maltodextrin cannot be classified as a prebiotic. I thought that maltodextrin is readily absorbed high up in the small intestine, close to the stomach. So, it cannot serve as a prebiotic, because it is absorbed before it can reach almost any intestinal bacteria.So, please help me understand this better. Thanks.


----------



## Kathleen M. (Nov 16, 1999)

I think I said that because someone else calls it that, I didn't make the decision.Here are websites calling that compound a prebioitc. Sorry if all of them are completely wrong and I didn't look it up right.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=A...9055f0a1a03f3echttp://www.jacn.org/cgi/content/abstract/27/2/356Now it looks like there are different kinds of maltodextrin and I don't know what they used. Usually ingredient lists aren't all that specific.


----------



## Moises (May 20, 2000)

Kathleen,Thanks for your informative response.From what I can tell, it seems that you are correct and that "there are different kinds of maltodextrin," and the resistant kind has prebiotic properties that the non-resistant kind lacks. So, the elemental diets are using the non-resistant kind of maltodextrin.


----------

