Probiotic Foods-Brands

[grlNIN]

I just read an article about Probioti's and how they help with regulating and speeding up the digestive system. They mentioned that they're found in yogurts and smoothies and to look for brands that mention Probiotic on it but those were the only two types of food that they mentioned and didn't offer any brand names to pursue.

Anyone know specifics or use them in their diet?

[Thebazile78]

I've found that eating a yogurt with live, active cultures (this is key) helps me to not get "tummy trouble" if I'm taking an antibiotic.

Also, I have less GI distress if I eat yogurt in general, but haven't tried probiotic products (like DanActive, Activia, et al) . . . I think the marketing kind of turns me off. There are a couple of cheeses that have probiotics in them (I think Kraft has some, but I can't be sure; if it's not on sale, I walk right by it!)

My biggest problem tends to be milk. I'll be able to drink it for a few months and then, suddenly, I'll get "tummy trouble" and I'll have to stop. But a girl has to get her calcium somehow, and Viactiv is expensive, so I turn to yogurt and cheese.

People have been using probiotics in one way, shape, or form for centuries. They're just marketing it differently now.

[grlNIN]

Yeah they said it's been around forever and i have seen stuff for Activia, never put it together though.

I am the same way with my stomach, every few months(seems to be when i am at my most stressed) the ability to eat dairy or consume any amount of caffeine outside half a can of soda is lost.

Over the summer it was at it's worst and we all assumed it was the onset of lactose intolerance but around September i slowly began working some dairy back into my diet(i love love love milk and it killed me to stop drinking it) and haven't experienced any significant problems since.

[Snacks]

how does cheese and yogurt not bother your stomach but milk does? Do you drink whole milk, 2% or skim?

[King Hippos Bandaid]

Im taking the pill form Acidophilus for the last 2 1/2 weeks with advice from my gastro doc

without being totally disgusting, it has helped me digest better and have less belly pain

[grlNIN]

But would Activia, let's say, have the same effect as what you're taking?

I would presume that it's not as strong.

[King Hippos Bandaid]

But would Activia, let's say, have the same effect as what you're taking?

I would presume that it's not as strong.


my doc says that activa yogurt is not as strong, but does the job

he doesnt trust me in just eating the yogurt, with all the mcrib talk , I can understand his concerns

[Thebazile78]

how does cheese and yogurt not bother your stomach but milk does? Do you drink whole milk, 2% or skim?

Because I'm not lactose intolerant.

I have issues with milk whether I drink 1%, 2% or skim. I've never tried whole milk, but most drinks high in fat make me sick to my stomach so I'm afraid to try.

HOWEVER, I don't have the milk issues when I drink organic milk no matter what the fat percentage. Maybe a lot of that is the placebo effect, but sometimes I'm not so sure.

[Thebazile78]

Found in Tara Parker-Pope's blog "Well" ... a feature created during the NY Times's Health section online re-design:

Can Yogurt Really Boost Your Health? (http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/24/can-yogurt-really-boost-your-health/) (Posted by TPP: 24 January 2008)

The entry mentions a class-action lawsuit in CA against Dannon (http://www.google.com/search?q=class-action+lawsuit+%2B+Dannon+%2B+Activia&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a). (Link to Google Search Results using "class-action lawsuit + Dannon + Activia" as search criteria)

I hadn't heard about the lawsuit (I don't work on pubs that would cover class-action claims) but found it interesting.

I wasn't about to go and buy any brands proclaiming themselves to be probiotic anyway. Then again, I've always looked for yogurt with live, active cultures though I do tend to eat more yogurt when I'm taking an antibiotic (I get SO sick from those!) because it makes me feel less sick. (Although, truthfully, I haven't taken an antibiotic for anything in just over 5 years. I'm more afraid of superbugs than I am of being sick!)

BTW, don't know if I've already posted it, but the NY Times article In Live Bacteria, Food Makers See a Bonanza (http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/22/business/22yogurt.html?_r=1&oref=slogin) (NY Times, Business section, 22 January 2007) makes some interesting points about this trend.

SEE ALSO, A Spoonful of Immunity (http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F0DE2DA163BF934A25751C0A96E9C8B 63&scp=1&sq=vietnamese+herb&st=nyt) (NY Times, Dining & Wine section, 17 February 2008) about a Beverly Hills restaurant, Crustacean, that is indicating certain items on its are thought to boost immunity by using an icon that emulates a Vietnamese herb.

Very interesting stuff, here, folks. Really.

[smiler grogan]

I enjoy eating the 2% cottage cheese single serving containers. I had one a while back that had the activa in it and I don't have "tummy trouble" so my stomach blew up like a biafrian. I guess my point is that the stuff in the yogurt or cottage ceese seems to be effective.

[HBox]

Activia is just plain nasty. It tastes chalky. You'd be better off sticking to acidophilus pills.

[PhishHead]

Activia is just plain nasty. It tastes chalky. You'd be better off sticking to acidophilus pills.


There are some studies done that believe that acidophilus can cure lactose intolerance, it has not worked for me but I think it is because my problems go deeper then that.

[LaBoob]

I sell for a vitamin manufacturer/distributor and have tried many things for my poor digestion but found that probiotics have changed my life. A lot of yogurts and kefirs (a more liquidy, yogurty drink - yum!) have tons of sugars in them, which actually can kill the probiotics. So can pasteurization. If you want to get serious about probiotics, go for a high potency capsule form.
Also, many of the yogurt products say they "contain live, active cultures" but don't claim how much. How much makes all the difference. It takes 80 billion active cultures (3 capsules) a day to keep my stomach happy. Activia claims 3 billion per serving. :flush: