The Digestion Blog » b. infantis

Align Probiotics Review: First Glance

Gabriel — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 08:29:16 +0000

Align Probiotics Review

Recently Proctor & Gamble’s marketing department got in touch with me to take a look at their flagship probiotic, Align. While I haven’t actually started taking Align yet, I’d like to share some of my first thoughts on the product.

I’ve seen Align advertised before & it has received good reviews on places like Amazon.com. I am a little skeptical on mass marketed products that have slick packaging. In some cases the word probiotic is used to attract people to a product that has little digestive benefit. In one case I got some terrible breakfast bars that supposedly had “probiotics” in them, but they were barely a step above sweetened laminated cardboard. I don’t think this is a goal of Align since they are strictly focusing on a probiotic supplement where the cardboard is only in the packaging, not the actual product.

Packaging

As I said above the packaging looks very nice. I received some sample sized versions which have a little fold out flap with information about Align & it even has a nifty 7-day calendar to track your progress. The capsules themselves come in a flat blister pack for 7-days. You can tear each capsule away from the sheet before opening it. Each capsule has a day of the week listed on it. I am not quite sure if this is how the retail 28-day supply is packaged, but I’d imagine it is similar. Additionally Align promotes the use of the AlignGI.com website, which has an online digestive tracker. All these ways to track your progress, I feel are helpful. One of the hard parts about taking probiotics is taking them consistently and at a regular time. Anything that makes it easier to remember to take your probiotic or to really be able to track your progress, I see as a good thing.

Contents

As for what’s in Align, it goes 100% with the B. Infantis 35624 strain of bacteria for it’s probiotics. There are a lot of products that mix it up and go for a bunch of different strains. I am not too worried about only one strain of bacteria being in there, it may even be beneficial to focus on producing a single high quality strain than to put in a mix of different, but lower quality strains. B. Infantis 35624 has been shown in studies to improve Irritable Bowel symptoms.

Align contains 1 Billion Colony Forming Units(CFUs) of B. Infantis 35624, this is considerably lower than other probiotics on the market. Again I don’t mind this so much as I think CFUs are overrated. Really it’s about quality. If you have 20 billion CFUs but they all die before hitting your gut or are contaminated with other things, it’s not going to do you any good. Also a lot of people have problems tolerating high doses of probiotics. Going low & slow may be the best approach.

Another positive is that it would appear Align uses a vegetable based capsule(not geletin), so vegetarians probably shouldn’t have any problems taking this. There is no lactose, gluten or soy in Align either. There is “Milk Protein” listed as an ingredient, but trace amounts are found in other probiotics as well.

Criticisms

One thing that does bug me is the use of Titanium Dioxide & FD&C Blue #1. Perhaps this was something that came out of focus groups or something. I would have preferred no artificial coloring in the product at all. I am sure there’s only a tiny bit in there, but if I am only going to see the capsule for a few seconds before popping it in my mouth, I shouldn’t care if it’s “white” or “off-white”.

Cost & Money-Back Guarantee

Align is some what pricey, especially when you are dealing with only getting 1 billion CFUs per capsule. However, if it does turn out to be higher quality & works for you, then I am sure it’ll be worth the money.

Align is offering a Money-Back Guarantee, which is actually pretty sweet. Try it for one month, if it doesn’t work, take them up on the refund.

Where To Buy

Buy Align from Amazon.com
Find a local store.

Disclosure: I was supplied by Proctor & Gamble with samples of Align. The positive or negative outcome of this review is not based on receiving these samples.

Review: Nature’s Way Primadophilus for Children

Gabriel — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 01:27:12 +0000

During my great search for the perfect probiotic, one of my desires that keeps popping up is the ability to control exactly how much of the probiotic I am putting into my body. Tapering probiotics is important to help avoid or lessen the symptoms of the Herx Effect.

What’s in Nature’s Way Primadophilus for Children?

It contains the following probiotic strains:

Lactobacillus Rhamnosus
Lactobacillus Casei
Lactobacillus acidophilus
Bifidobacterium infantis
Bifidobacterium bifidum
Bifidobacterium breve
Bifidobacterium longum

The main one we’re concerned with is B. infantis, which as been proven in studies to help with IBS symptoms. Overall, these strains all have a purpose in our gut. One thing to keep in minds is that this product does contain FOS, which can cause gas for some people.

What does Nature’s Way Primadophilus for Children taste like & how do you use it?The taste of a probiotic is not something you normally have to deal with as most are in pill form. The taste is sweet, most likely due to the FOS content. It doesn’t taste bad at all, I liken it to a mildly sweet apple flavor. Once you mix it in with water or a beverage you can’t really taste it. I would recommend mixing it with room temperature or moderately warm water. Cold water seems to cause it to clump together.

Again the nice thing about this product is that you can measure it out exactly to control how much you’re taking. I decided to start with a very small amount, 1/8th teaspoon and then double it every week until I reached maximum dosage. This is not something you can usually do with other probiotic supplements because they are in pill form and rely on the probiotics being contained within the pill before entering the lower gut. The FOS in this product, I believe, is suppose to help it get through the stomach acids and into the lower gut where it can be effective. Though, I am not certain how effective this delivery method actually is.

Keep in mind as well that this product does require refrigeration

Did it help my IBS?

Initially, I believe I was having some positive results. The first couple of days were similar to other probiotics I’ve taken, I felt bloated & somewhat nauseated. This did subside somewhat over the following weeks. I noticed a mild improvement in the regularity of bowel movements, though my symptoms were not dramatically improved. Unfortunately after about a month of use, I accidentally left my fridge door open and all my food became spoiled & perhaps my probiotics. Not wanting to risk taking “rancid” probiotics, I bought a new container. I resumed my 1 teaspoon regimen, which is where I was at, at that time. Unfortunately I got bloated and became nauseated again with this product immediately, even though I seemingly had been using it before at the same dosage. I am guessing perhaps the batch I had before was older and thus perhaps less potent.

Would I recommend the product?

Yes I would. It did improve my symptoms for a short period of time. I have a touchy system so don’t use it as an example, it may work much better for you than for me, so it’s definitely worth a shot. Taking a powdered form is good for dosage control, which is pretty much impossible with a pill.

Where can I get it?

You can check out your local supermarket or nutrition store. I found some at my local Fred Meyer’s(may also be called Kroger’s in some areas) or purchase Nature’s Way Primadophilus for Children from Amazon.com, by clicking the link.

New Direction For My IBS Treatment

Gabriel — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:50:12 +0000

New Direction For My IBS Treatment

I am taking another stab at trying to tame my IBS. So I’ve emptied my wallet a bit to invest in some supplements and herbal remedies to see how they’re going to fair. I’ll be sure to relay how they work out in the coming weeks.

Here is what I am trying:

Iberogast – an herbal pro-kinetic/motility formula. Basically it aids in moving food through your digestive system properly. It’s all natural, which is a definite plus.
Psyllium Husks - A soluble fiber. I’ve tried Acacia fiber before and the results were constipating. It appears soluble fiber slows the gut down. This might be what you want if you’re suffering from chronic diarrhea, but for me it slowed it down a bit too much. Perhaps I’ll have different luck with Psyllium Husk. I’ve come to notice that bean fiber seems to actually be the most beneficial fiber I’ve eaten so far. So maybe I should look more in the direction of an insoluble fiber for future experiments.
Magnesium – Aids in attracting water to the gut, it’s considered more of a diarrhetic. Helpful in keeping things moving.
Nature’s Way Primadophilus Junior – This is a probiotic product made by Nature’s Way which contains B. Infantis, a probiotic that has been shown to help with IBS symptoms. It contains 3 billion CFUs(colony forming units), which is less than most other probiotic products. I feel this is a good thing for me, as I think that starting with a high CFU can lead to problems, mainly constipation. I hope to avoid it by taking the Psyllium Husk & Magnesium.
NSI B12 Methylcobalamin – Methylcobalamin is a highly absorbable variety of B12. It helps with the nervous system, plus it’s suppose to help with fatigue & energy levels.

I got the NSI B12 Methylcobalamin in yesterday & the Iberogast in today. I am still waiting on the other stuff. I’ll do a write-up and hopefully post some pictures as well in the next coming days. Stay Tuned :)!

Living With Gastroparesis Blog.

Came across the Living With Gastroparesis Blog while looking up information on Iberogast. If you’re dealing with GP, know someone who has or are just interested in GP as a digestive ailment, you should check it out. She is currently in the process of getting an Enterra Gastric Pacemaker calibrated. Her message about being your own advocate, I sincerely agree with, as all to often digestive ailments are overlooked or not given the concern they deserve in the medical field. I still have quite a bit of anger over how my dealings with GP were handled back in 2006 by an out to lunch medical system. I am wishing her the best and I’d suggest checking out her blog. :)