Hospitals with their life, death, and strange smell zeitgeist have been the setting for several major revelations in my life (not the least of which is that nutritionists consider Malt-o-Meal a “solid food” but Jell-O is a “liquid”) and this time it was no different. My 3rd son, just nine months old at the time, hung limply in my arms as nurses and doctors buzzed around us. There was no waiting for us in the the waiting room when I brought my baby in, nearly unconscious with a fever of 107. The triage nurse took one look at my son and half the night staff descended on us. Weirdly all I could think about was the beginning of that Nicholas Cage/Meg Ryan flick City of Angels where the least sexy angel ever, Seth (Cage), escorts a little girl in yellow footie pajamas to heaven after she dies of a fever. The opening sequence ends with the anguished wail of her mother. To this day I hate that movie.
Over the five days my son was in the hospital, it was established that he had an infection but no one knew what it was or how he had contracted it. We went through antibiotic after antibiotic until at last we were down to the nuclear option: an IV drip of the most potent antibiotic available. If this didn’t work, the doctors told us, there wasn’t anything else we could do except try to support his body as it fought off the infection itself. Thankfully it did work, drip by drip, as I held him to my chest and rocked back and forth – the only position he would sleep in – and simultaneously prayed and watched Home and Garden Television on mute (not as mutually exclusive as one might think – you see a lot of God’s humor in Real Estate Wars). My baby recovered and I thanked God again for not putting me on earth in any century prior to this one. (Seriously, have you ever counted how many people you know would be dead without modern medicine? Half my girlfriends would have died in childbirth.) I learned two life-changing things from this experience:
1. I had serious issues with exercise addiction. Those of you that read my book
2. I discovered probiotics. This revelation may not seem as important as the first one – it’s certainly not as dramatic! – but it has been life-saving in its own right. When we took the baby home, we had to keep him on the nuclear antibiotic for a month to make sure the infection was really gone. Any of you that have taken antibiotics for an extended period of time will know what havoc it wreaks on your system. The baby immediately started with severe diarrhea that almost put him back in the hospital because the antibiotics had wiped out all the good bacteria in his little gut. The doctor gave us some packets of probiotics – good bacteria – in powder form that we sprinkled in his food to replenish his colon. Within a day the diarrhea was gone.
Ever since that experience I have kept a supply of probiotics on hand and give it to all my kids whenever they have a tummy ailment. Jelly Bean got her first dose from my breast milk – all mom juice comes loaded with probiotics! – but has had the powder sprinkled in her food since she was just a few months old and has never had a bad bout of diarrhea. While I go back and forth about different vitamins and supplements – I haven’t taken a multi since that research came out showing that people who did lived 15 years less than people who didn’t – probiotics are the one supplement that I love whole-heartedly. (Let me insert here that I am no doctor nor any kind of medical professional and everything in this post should be taken as just my experience and not as medical advice.)
What Are Probiotics and Prebiotics?
Briefly, probiotics are “live microorganisms, which, when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit on the host.” The most common types are “Lactobacillus orBifidobacterium. Within each group, there are different species (for example,Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium bifidus), and within each species, different strains (or varieties). A few common probiotics, such as Saccharomyces boulardii, are yeasts, which are different from bacteria.”
Prebiotics are undigestible food parts that encourage the growth of probiotics.
Where Can You Find Them?
Probiotics have been used since ancient times as they are the active agents in fermented foods and cultured dairy products like yogurt, kefir, miso, kombucha etc. While food sources can be a great way to get your probiotics, sometimes you need more or at least a more consistent strain and that’s where the pill form comes in. I recently was sent (for free, FTC!) a sample of ReNew Life’s Ultimate Flora. While I have been buying – and having good results with – the generic acidophilus at Target, I was impressed by the broader spectrum of probiotics included in the Ultimate Flora. I’ve been using them on myself and the kids for the past month and they have got us through one round of stomach flu!
Benefits
Probiotics are not just good for tummy troubles. Research has shown that these good germs help with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), inflammatory bowel disease, h Pylori infections (the bacteria that causes some types of ulcers), tooth decay and gum health, vaginal and urinary tract infections, and some respiratory and skin infections. There was even a study that showed that post-partum women who took a probiotic supplement had lost more weight at 6 months than those who didn’t.
Risks
The most common side effects from probiotics and prebiotics are gas and bloating. But as there hasn’t been enough research to say whether or not they’re harmless, you should always talk to your doctor about taking them and if you have any strange reactions then quit taking them immediately.
Giveaway
ReNew Life is offering one of you a $50 giftcard to try out anything in their digestive health line. Not only do they have probiotics and prebiotics but they’ve got a great selection of oils, fiber, immune system supports and other supplements. To enter to win:
1. Leave me a comment telling me your worst stomach story or which supplement you swear by.
2. For a second entry, like ReNew Life’s founder Brenda Watson on Facebook and leave me a separate comment telling me you did so.
I swear by probiotics too – and for me, on the contrary, the probiotics *relieve* my bloating and gas. I was on antibiotics for my acne for a long period of time, not knowing how much I was killing my poor body. So now I’m replenishing the happy flora in my gut 😀
I “like” Brenda Watson on FB 🙂 – I’ve actually watched all her PBS shows 😀
I am in the middle of a Renew Life Cleanse so I’d love to try their probiotics when this is over. I had been using probiotics religiously before the cleanse to help with GI issues. I can’t wait to get back to them!
I actually already take probiotics. I started taking them probably four or five months after I kicked my laxative habit to regulate myself again (taking laxatives in insane dosages for several years truly messed me up) – I find I take them as indicated on the bottle and I don’t really have issues or discomfort anymore. yay!
My worst stories are about my husband. The poor thing has had such terrible digestive helth issues since he was a baby. His mom took him to many doctors and had tried many different diets on him. But nothing was ever figured out. It would be so bad that he would scream, bleed, and even puke when the bathroom problems hit. He is still almost that bad. I finally have him in the habit of drinking enough water and I give him fiber, but he needs more help.
junerlisle @ gmail . com
I “Like” Brenda Watson, C.N.C. on Facebook.
I like Pharmax and Jarrow brand probiotics– they help a lot with my digestive issues. Oh and I also HATE that movie too– I cried for 20 minutes straight after it ended. My husband thought I was nuts. 🙂
Nicaragua, stomach sickness, diarrhea for 3 days/nights. Plus side, they have great medical care even in the more remote areas and once I saw the Dr. was given antibiotics and it cleared up in one day. Happy flora are still recovering…
Last year, I had an appendicitis “scare.” Had to stay overnight in the hospital, and the next morning, they told me I could leave… and they weren’t even able diagnose me!! Pretty ridiculous…and SO painful!!
I’ve always eaten yogurt often, but I never knew that probiotics were THAT beneficial! Interesting info!!
I started using Align a month and a half ago, so far so good, it really seems to be helping with my stomach issues, much more so than yogurt ever did.
I am only going to leave one comment because A) it will be a doozey of a comment B) I feel odd “liking” a woman I’ve never heard of *shrug* I’m weird.
I know I always joke about how I work in a poop lab…but I do. Our company makes products to test for the number one nosocomial infection (I believe it has surpassed MRSA) – clostridium difficile. This bug jumps into your intestines when antibiotics wipe out the good bugs that were there and it takes over, make the host extremely ill. So to answer your giveaway question, I deal with what comes out of everyone’s worst stomach stories on a daily basis.
I recently asked the microbiology PhD who works for our company about probiotics and whether or not he believed it was worth taking them. I got a 20 min speech about a lot of things I don’t really remember for an answer, but the basic gist of it was this: he said there is no real way to scientifically measure whether or not probiotics work when taken orally (um… they DO work when administered in other fashions but you DONT want to know how) and he, personally, has never used them but they cannot hurt. Likely, they do help if they can survive your stomach acidity and get into the gut.
He also warned me against yogurts like Activia. He said they market their product to everyone by saying ‘it keeps you regular’ but it is actually made to help you poo more if you are experiencing constipation. AKA if you have the runs, don’t eat Activia.
Regarding a supplement I personally swear by, I would say whey or branch chain amino acids… but that is likely not what you were looking for.
I feel a little awkward writing a rant on diarrhea, but what can I say? It’s my area of expertise. Not that I’m an expert.
AHHHH PROBIOTICS.
I was a totaly skeptic until I found them and FOUND THEM.
they work for me.
they work for *us*.
Thanks Joob for the comments – I need to warn my MIL about Activa! Probably making her problems worse. My worst: on travel with my entire family for a family reunion. Staying in a hotel and have the Worst Night Ever after a bad bratwurst. Thankfully, my hubs took great care of our 9 month old who didn’t miss me at all because he was getting so very much attention from everyone else! Would love to try this probiotic. Thanks for the chance!
I’m a big believer in probiotics! Here’s my experience:
My now 2-yr old was a really fussy infant. He only napped for 30-40 minutes at a time and would wake up screaming. Sometimes I would be holding him when he did and after screaming and wriggling around a bit he would pass gas – I concluded pretty quickly that stomach troubles kept him from napping longer. When I got the go-ahead to start solids at 4 months (I know, I should’ve waited till 6 but I was desperate) instead of starting with rice cereal, I gave him yobaby yogurt. Literally within days of starting it he went from those 30-40 minute naps to 1.5 – 2 hour naps. It was the only thing that changed in our routine, so I completely credit those probiotics for “fixing” his poor little gut.
My worst stomach story is about a time when I was in sixth grade and it was chicken spaghetti day at school, and I ate two or three helpings of chicken spaghetti. By that night I had come down with a stomach bug, and I realized this after I had gone to bed. I threw up what seemed like a gallon of chicken spaghetti on the floor right next to my bed. Yuck. It was a long night.
My worst stomach story was diarrhea 10x per day while staying with a friend in Thailand who had no flushing toilets, running, water, or toilet paper. I never figured out if it was food poisoning or a bacterial infection or what, but it was super unpleasant. And then the family that I was staying with (who I had just met) kept asking me about my condition at every meal. Yay! I’m really excited about trying the probiotics because I have stomach issues, and I think it might help.
I’ve tried the NOW and Renew Life brands and they seem to work the best on me! They definitely work; my stomach troubles have gone down a lot. 🙂
It sounds nasty but I’ve had amazing benefits from fermented cod liver oil…haven’t had a cold in a long while since taking it!
It sounds nasty but I’ve had amazing benefits from fermented cod liver oil…haven’t had a cold in a long while since taking it!
I was diagnosed with IBS after suddenly experiencing major stomach problems/bloating/etc. a couple years ago….I’m pretty sure it is a side effect of my ED, and sadly (for me), it also caused me to gain about 20 pounds…putting me BACK in the healthy weight range. However, now, my stomach can bloat up so badly it will look like i’m 8 months pregnant, and I also get such bad sharp pains that I am rendered immobile until they go away. Probiotics have helped this , as well as ginger, and taking yoga too! I like the chewable acidolpholus (spelling?) tablets…those work well!
just tried my first kombucha last night! i liked it! i figured i should ease into it, so I got one of the flavored ones. next time i’ll probably try a less sweet one.
worst stomach issues: practically every sunday morning during my sophomore year at college. its no wonder my body can no longer tolerate alcohol 🙁
ah, stomach problems… probably the worst for me was the severe diarrhea before I was diagnosed with celiac (gluten intolerance)… it would strike. all the time. without warning :/ probiotics are awesome!
I liked Brenda on FB
I liked Brenda on Facebook.
Thankfully I don’t have any super terrible stomach issues to speak of, although I am the most un-regular person and sometimes that causes extreme discomfort and pain.
I swear by Dynamite supplements. They have made a huge difference in the health of my family (including our four-legged family members).
I’m lucky to not have too many bouts with stomach problems, but I have a friend who has enough for everyone. He eats super spicy thai food which causes him to … how to put this politely? … visit the restroom for an inordinate amount of time. When we go out for Thai food, we can’t sit and chat for too long after dinner. It’s seriously like a ticking clock. And that is probably way more information than you ever wanted to know!
I only have occasional issues but my youngest (who is now 17) is fairly lactose intolerant and I believe probably has IBS (as many things other than milk products affect her). She was on antibiotics for 6+ years after birth for a kidney problem and that masked her condition (because, as you mentioned, long term antibiotics mess up your digestion). The doctors back then never really cared because she was growing fine. I think I will get some of this Flora to see if it helps her. She can try to take some for a while and then try out icecream and I can also keep it around for when she eats something that just disagrees with her. Can’t wait to tell her (she limits anything that can set her off to Friday nights so that it is out of her system by school on Monday morning – not a fun way to live).
Ohhh, I hate City of Angels, too! I watched the whole movie, thinking I would love it and it would be one of those movies that I bought and watched over and over again….but I’ve never seen it since. Going to have to (repectfully) disagree with you on Nicholas Cage, though. Not quite sure what it is about him. LOL
I have dealthwith “tummy” issues for years now…When I was in high school, I used to get sick every single time I went shopping at the mall with my friends. Allergic to the mall? What’s the deal? Took me a while to figure out that that it was NOT the mall causing my tummy trouble, but the large, surgar-laden chocolate caramel coffee drink we’d indulge in. Even now, too much sugar sends me running to the bathroom. (Something I try to remember when the craving hits.)
I have taken probiotics from time to time…usually after finishing a round of antibiotics, but never regularly.
Sometimes I feel like everyday is my worst stomach story. I’ve tried probiotics but they are so expensive to purchase the “good” ones only to have things not work. I would love to try this brand and see if it could help.
I “liked”
I have had a very sensitive stomach for a long time. I f I eat certain foods, it acts up. So one Sunday morning I had some Fiber One yogurt for breakfast and then my hasband and I went to Luby’s for lunch. One the way home from Luby’s my stomach started to really hurt, like I had to go to the bathroom. I figured that I could hold it until we got home, maybe 10 minutes. Well, apparently I could not hold it and went #2 all over myself, while driving! Most embarassing moment ever! At that time we were still dating, and had only been together about 6 months. So when we got home I had to walk upstair to our apartment with this in my pants. Goodness….no one knows that story except my husband. See, I could use probiotics =)
Ugh. Last year I got food poisoning and couldn’t even keep water down for 4 days. I was at a new job and my insurance hadn’t kicked in yet, so I spent the whole time on the couch shivering and watching a Jersey Shore marathon when I should have been at the doctor. The worst was the night that I woke up , on the bathroom floor, presumably because I fainted from severe dehydration while throwing up.
Reading a lot lately on all the benefits of good bugs, I’m making an effort now to get in kombucha, kefir, homemade lacto-fermented salsa or kimchi every day. The kids on the other hand only go for yogurt or kefir on a good day, so I’m going to look into the Ultimate Flora as a back up. I’ve never really had stomach issues before, but recently I’ve been getting weird pain right below my rib cage, sometimes vomitting, sometimes not. I think I figured out the culprit’s been lemon. I read it helps decrease the insulin spike from food so I’ve been having slices and slices of it in my water all day long. Maybe the acid has been too much for my belly to handle? I’ve cut it out completely this past week and so far so good, keeping fingers crossed it’s a simple fix.
Worst stomach story ever. On a beautiful, secluded tropical island off the coast of Malaysia, in a hut on stilts jutting out of crystal clear, blue water…I spent 4 solid days in the bathroom…along with my two kids (1-1/2 and 3 at the time) and hubby. We think it was the prepackaged ice cream cones that did us in?! It was intestinal distress like you wouldn’t wish on any enemy. My poor kids. We did finally get to appreciate the awesome beauty of our surroundings…from the boat on our way back to the mainland.
I also swear by probiotcs, but I like drinking them, liquid form, via Lifeway kefir. Full disclosure: My BFF is the CEO. But the stuff is awesome. She’s Russian and has been drinking kefir daily since birth and, quite literally, she NEVER gets sick. I swig a few gulps of Birthday Cake flavor every morning.
First off, thank you for this post. I have been having tummy issues since I had my baby and will be giving this a try whether or not I win them. Anything that is happening in my life or body gets translated straight to my stomach. It’s highly unfortunate.
Probably my worst stomach issues where when I was 13 and my parents were having a custody battle over me. I gave myself pre-ulcers and took so much pepto that the dr said that I should pretty much avoid it for the rest of my life. It was intensely painful. Now I just get upset stomach any time I get stressed out, don’t sleep enough, or eat something unusual. *sigh*
as a kid, i NEVER got sick. literally, never – no lice, no flu, no nothing. but once i hit 12 (yay puberty), i started getting horrible stomachaches. i would miss school and everything else – but at least it was only for one week a month, and even then i could function. when i was about 16, it started getting a lot worse – my normally-sensitive-stomach became my super-sensitive, food-hating stomach, and by the time i went off to college it frequently interfered with my life – i’ve missed more things than i can count because of it. when i was 19, my mom heard of probiotics and sent me a couple months of packages. usually with vitamins, supplements and other things my mom stuffs in my face, its hard to tell whether its actually working or not. with probiotics (i started with Align, then switched to some target-generic-brand because it was much cheaper) i felt the difference within 2 weeks. i take 1 pill every night, no exceptions… it hasn’t completely solved my issues, and my stomach is still very sensitive to food (cutting out dairy and most meats helped as well), but i can definitely say probiotics has, literally, changed my life.
I also swear by probiotcs, but I like drinking them, liquid form, via Lifeway kefir. Full disclosure: My BFF is the CEO. But the stuff is awesome. She’s Russian and has been drinking kefir daily since birth and, quite literally, she NEVER gets sick. I swig a few gulps of Birthday Cake flavor every morning. http://healthbreaksloose.com/hlb-body-image/does-this-bikini-wax-make-me-look-fat
sorry – not trying to hijack your comments with that link. Comment Luv is not showing me any LUV, giving me some trouble…
I love Lifeway Kefir! They make probiotic “shots” that are darn delicious.
Ugh my worst stomach story is that in college, I developed a perforated ulcer that was somehow so perfectly placed that it sucked my diaphragm into my stomach with every breath, so every time i took a breath, I also burped. I was real popular that semester, let me tell you…
Love probiotics! We get most of ours from fermented foods and drinks like water kefir and kombucha. I definitely notice a big difference in digestion when I don’t take them! My kids have never had to take antibiotics, but probiotics are definitely great when they get a stomach bug.
When The Girl was 16 months old, she came down with RSV, despite my repeated attempts for insurance to cover the shots. Her ass was so chapped from diarrhea that it looked like she was bleeding. She spent 5 days sleeping face down on my chest, her bare ass airing out, with me sitting in the glider. The Lactinex stopped the diarrhea, so it was all about getting her skin to heal up. It was the middle of the day on day 3 that she was asleep on me. As I was trapped, I was also playing my Xbox360 (don’t you judge me; I was trapped!). Suddenly, my pelvic area grew very hot. And then rapidly became cool. She had just peed on me. Yes, there.
Huh, I really didn’t know much about probiotics but now I’d love to try them. I’ve always have stomach issues (apparently even as a baby) and I think long-term ED stuff really made it much worse.
OK, they say that exercise helps IBS, but not so for me. This is not exactly a “worst” story (since it’s an ongoing saga, not a story), but whenever I run, I get the same plural. Make sense? I don’t want to be more graphic. It’s gross and inconvenient. So help me with the probiotics, etc. Danke.
I “liked” Brenda Watson on FB.
I swear by probiotics. I take two capsules daily, once in the morning and once in the evening. And I eat a ton of raw milk and fermented foods and beverages for even more good bacteria. I give my 17 month old some in her smoothie every day, even though she still gets breast milk.
As far as your comments about vitamins..have you read The Diet Cure? It is amazing! Such a life changing book for me.
So glad to hear your baby is well, that must have been terrifying!
I definitely will not share my worst story of stomach trouble. The only supplements I take are fish oil and a One-A-Day multivitamin for women with a little extra Vitamin D.
I swear by supplements from Len & Joe’s and Melaleuca. I really need to get on a probiotic though, so I’d love to win this giveaway 🙂
I started giving my daughter probiotics when she was a baby, as she had a lot of stomach issues, poor thing!
My worst stomach trouble? The weekend ski trip at a lodge in Vermont with my family and another family. Every room was decorated by the couple who owned the inn. I was 14 or 15, and I got stomach flu in the middle of the night.
Let’s just say I did a WHOLE LOTTA RE-decorating one of the rooms that night! And it was not pretty, lol!
Hmm worst stomach story…I had norwalk one year on my birthday. I honest to goodness would never wish that upon anyone ever. It was the sickest I had ever been!
Worst stomach problem=mono when the infection goes also into your liver + finals week in college
I have the rare gift of always getting sick on holidays. This dates from my very first hospital stay at a mere 6 months old on Christmas. I am a holiday-ruiner! Anyway, my worst stomach experience was on Christmas 3 years ago. I got a Norovirus and couldn’t shake it for 3 days…which landed me in the hospital. Again. Such fun.
My daughter has pervasive low muscle tone. That means muscles that make her move as well as organs. Heart, stomach, and even though you’ll hate me colon. I didn’t know this for her whole life.
Cut to us staying at the in-laws and a bout of her constipation sets in. My cure-all is usually fiber paste made from raisins, oranges, prunes, and unpeeled apple. But, then she moves on to a tub of pretty warm water to let those muscles relax in. Remember we were at the in-laws. She is still freaking out in the tub. So I strip. I get the warm water flowing pretty constantly onto her lower back and we sit together in the tub. Nekkid.
Cut to the warm water running out and me frantically turning off the water before the screams start again. I BREAK THE KNOB. Cold water. Spraying everywhere.
“MR. SURVIVAL!” I SHRIEK over and over. Miss comes to see what is wrong. I tell her to go get her dad. MIL tells her he is busy. She comes back to tell me and I tell her I don’t !@#@!@# care, just to go get him. Except without swearing. Chickadee is screaming. Water is spraying. I am nekkid and I just dripped on all my clothes.
Just before I make a mad dash across the hall to safety with a naked baby screaming away, my MIL is there outside the door, “Is there anything I can do?”
I need to eat more greek yogurt for the probiotics, but a pill or powder would be great!!
when my daughter was 9 months old (what is the deal with the 9 month sickness???) she got a HORRIBLE stomach virus. diarrhea for a week straight. liquid diarrhea, like when she pooped, it was so hard to change her diaper b/c it was liquid. sorry, that was gross.
My tummy ailment is that I bloat with pretty much any veggie type food along with milk products & even the good ole probiotic yogurt. I still eat them but honestly, I can look like early pregnancy with my bloating sometimes & it ain’t pretty… well, it ain’t nice smelling either cause it has to come out some way – I know – TMI! But it is the most uncomfortable feeling ever!
There was a 3 week period in college when every single night after dinner, I would get this dehabilitating cramps and the worst gas you have ever smelled. I literally couldn’t leave my room for fear of stinking up wherever i went. it was hoorible and my doctor recommended probiotics. i still get these fits once in a while, but not nearly as bad as before.
okay, I’ve never taken them and am a very regular girl except when I travel… and I get.. uhhhh … bound up… it’s horrible.. so will probiotics help with that problem?? mmmmm?? cuz if so I’m ordering me up some PRONTO… cuz there ain’t nothin’ worse that bein’ all bound up!
Annie
Worst stomach story involved a bag of sugar free gummi bears and an overnight train ride from Seville to Barcelona. Sorbitol is evil.
My worst tummy problem was on a camping trip for my son’s 3rd birthday. I got a stomach virus with no vomiting, just the “runs”. It hit in the middle of the night. It was pitch dark so I couldn’t find my way to the bath house and was scared anyway. I had to use the portable potty my 2yr old was using to pottytrain away from home with. My big bum didn’t even fit on it. So there I was having diarrhea on a 2 yr old’s potty seat on the front porch of the cabin we were camping in. I’ll never forget it! My favorite supplement is Sea Kelp and love the probiotics too.
I currently take 2 products which have helped my stomach a lot: lactoferrin which is meant to help with bone density and UDOs oils which have an great omega 3/6/9
blend. I have no idea why this combo has helped me so much but they really have calmed down my digestive system.
Went on some new meds for a heart condition. Needless to say, they screwed up my stomach. Morning after starting them, took my dog on a walk, and made a mess in my pants- I just couldn’t hold it! Most embarrassing day ever. Love me some probiotics! 🙂
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Good tip! But I was honestly a bit worried by the first part of your blog. Have you been thinking on how to deal with this addiction? I am sorry I ask you so bluntly but I am struggeling to fight the addiction but without going cold turkey and sacrificing sport completely and I find it very difficult.
Dana
Hi Dana!
The incident I wrote about at the hospital happened nearly 5 years ago. Since then I’ve gone to treatment for exercise addiction and am doing much better with it these days. I’ve written a TON about how I am overcoming it – just click on the “compulsive overexercise” link to read about it. Now I only work out an hour a day and I feel great. I know how hard this is but you can do it!!
🙂
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Worst stomach problems? The one and only time I’ve given myself food poisoning. I was up at about 2 am until 8 am with … bathroom problems. The problem? I then had to drive three hours, in the middle of pretty much no where, to go pick up an ex from a week away at some retreat thing. It was horrendous. And then I had to drive back.
I’ve actually used the ReNew Life probiotics before. I love them. But on a grad student stipend, they simply don’t fit in my budget on a regular basis. Oddly, the single biggest thing they helped clear up was my skin. Not sure why or how.
Oh, and it’s *H. pylori* if you want to be scientific about how things are capitalized.
I swear by Kombucha – started out with GT’s but now make my own. It has SAVED me from constant, frustrating and debilitating digestive distress. Hey, if we have 3 bacterial cells for every 1 human cell, then I think embracing probiotics just makes sense!
Just liked Brenda W. on FB. Thanks for the giveaway!
Oh, I could write a book on all the stomach troubles I’ve had. For the last three year, I’ve had recurring bouts of diarrhea. Some last a day, others 6 months. We’re talking multiple times A DAY here. One of the first things they I was told was to take a probitotic, which I did, religiously but to no avail. Then I learned that not every probiotic is created equally, and after some experiementation found some that work. And upped the does to twice a day. I’m slowly healing, but I think those three years are going to take a while to fix.
Also, just wanted to say that this was one of my favorite parts of your book. I thought it was really brave of you to put that out there. It was bold and really really drove home your point.
Thank you Katie! I really needed to hear that tonight:) The part about me being brave – not the part about your diarrhea… okay, maybe there’s some cosmic reason I needed to hear about your diarrhea too. God works in mysterious ways? Anyhow, thank you!!! And I’m glad your tummy is on the mend.
katie’s comment above me, could be mine too. she and i have talked endlessly about our stomach issues on private email.
suffice to say everything she said, me too. probiotics saved my gut! And also being STRICTLY GF for about 5 yrs, no cheating, period. And also vegan/vegetarian diet does best for my body.
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I’ve never used a probiotic product, but I have had a couple of bladder infections in my life which necessitated antibiotics, and my digestion didn’t get back to normal until eating yogurt for a couple of meals.
Liked Brenda Watson on Facebook.
Pancakes at MAC 24/7 in Honolulu (featured on Man v Food) plus sixty minute hike = me throwing up at the base of a mountain and getting driven back to a bus stop by a complete stranger.
Since I was a baby I’ve had the worst digestive/stomach issues. At 23 I finally decided to get a colonoscopy, after WAKING up during the procedure because I was in so much pain, the doctors found my colon to be completely twisted! They’re fix, take a laxative and fiber pills to “even out”, ha! I refused to listen to the crazy docs and instead visited a homeopathy doctor, he saved me! I had done so much damage to system that I now I have serious sensitivities to wheat, gluten and dairy, his fix? A lot of rounds of cleansing and now taking Zypan by Standard Process. Both have lessened my symptoms and I am able to live a semi-normal eating life! Probiotics have always been a great addition to my supplements…would love to try!
The supplements I swear by are calcium/magnesium in the evenings to help me sleep.
My worst stomach story was unfortunately on my honeymoon (so embarrassing as a new bride!). I spent the entire plane ride home from Mexico is the cramped, stinky, airplane bathroom, with my new hubby knocking on the door periodically to check on me. Not my finest hour. I take probiotics now, really just any kind i find on sale, so I’m anxious to try this.
Probiotics are a life saver, and I think should be in the arsenal of pretty much everyone. With our world’s contaminated water supply (nothing like getting a dose of chlorine and pharmaceuticals with your tea), the over medication, and the processed food, there exists almost no one these days that couldn’t benefit from some more healthy bacteria. I would really love to give this brand a try!
I’ve never had stomach problems, but I have to agree with the above comment about needing more healthy bacteria. I’m a firm believer that using antibacterial soaps and body washes constantly make people sick more often. I’m the girl who eats my sandwich on a trail ride without a second thought about washing my hands first and I’m sick less often than any of my friends or family. There has to be something to it!
I had a horrible bout of stomach flu (…I blamed it on the Chinese place I ate at that day) and for months afterwards, I couldn’t even eat a carrot without horrible indigestion. Then my gynecologist, of all people, recommended that I try Align. After taking Align for a while — and also lightly following some food advice from a Chinese medicine practitioner I know, who suggested eating all my vegetables cooked instead of raw while my stomach got better — I finally stopped feeling like WWIII was going on in my gut! And now I can even eat pizza (milk products were also a stomach-issue trigger) without hating life once in a while.
The really weird thing? My poor cat has the feline version of irritable bowel syndrome, and lost 20% of his body weight… it was really sad and scary. We put him through antibiotics, kitty steroids, and a special diet — and the one thing that helped him the most was mixing the powder in the Align capsules in with his food in the morning.
So now we’ve got a good morning routine going on. I pull out the Align probiotics… one for me, one for the kitty, and we’re both happier for the rest of the day!
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If your work depends on it, learn to check just three times.
*Run or move the pearl gently along the sharp edge of front teeth.
With the new Jelly Bean, you will be able to expand notifications
and get a preview on the recent e-mail message.
I hardly leave a response, but i did some searching and wound up here Prebiotics, Probiotics and a Hospital Epiphany [Giveaway!].
And I do have some questions for you if you do not mind.
Could it be just me or does it look like some of the comments appear like coming from brain dead people?
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you have to post. Could you make a list of the complete urls
of your public pages like your Facebook page, twitter feed, or linkedin profile?