Has anyone here tried SpoGest-IB probiotic?

[Sam_Peter]

Does it work for UC like what they advertised? I'm 46 now and have been living with Ulcerative Colitis for 12 years and experiencing bouts of diarrhea on and off for a long time. I'm currently on Octasa 800mg and want to know if this probiotic can be used alongside my current meds. Any recommendations on any other good probiotics you’ve tried and had success with are highly appreciated as well. Thanks!

[Annie31]

Have not heard of the brand you mention but my daughter is the same age as you. She was diagnosed when she was 27 and took Salofalk granules with the Danone probiotic yogurt drinks and found success to the point she remained in remission without any meds until last summer. Whereupon she started the same regime again and has been successful so I would think anything is worth trying and there is no harm in using probiotic drinks.

[Sam_Peter in reply to Annie31]

Thank you Annie! I'm not sure if I can take Salofalk coz I wasn't prescribed it and I'm afraid of side effects. I read that it may result in even more bowel motions. I have to check with my dr. first. And for the Danone, do you know which type did she try? I appreciate your help!

[Annie31 in reply to Sam_Peter]

Firstly I suppose you are aware that Asacol, Pentasa, Octasa, Mesavant and Salofalk are all branded names of the same medicine ie Mesalazine. The difference being they all come in different forms of delivery and from discussions on this forum in the past, many of us have come to the conclusion that one form of delivery may suit some people very well and others not so well. My daughter was prescribed the Salofalk granules as first line of treatment, and there was an improvement but it was her decision to use the yogurt drink to swallow down the granules and also have some kind of breakfast which ordinarily she didn't take. It was using the two together that worked very well and as said went into a very long remission with no problems. Now when she had her blip last summer (we still don't know why? - stress, shielding, working from home?) she was given the Salofalk in another form, tablets I believe, I will check with her and let you know on this. She continued to be really poorly so much so she had continual diarrhoea and she pleaded with her GP for the granules to try again. He had been authorised to dole out tablets, not the granules, however he prescribed the granules and within two or three days it was a complete recovery again. He apologised!

As far as the Danone probiotic yogurt drink is concerned, as far as I know it was the ones on the supermarket shelves, pack of six? I will check with her when she's free. She's never had any adverse side effects from the Salofalk.

My younger daughter was also diagnosed with UC at eleven years old and has had a tumultuous life with this disease. She's now 31 years old with no large bowel and a pouch formed from her small bowel! She was started with Pentasa enemas, didn't work, Pentasa tablets, didn't work and went through the whole caveat of medications over her teenage years and the only thing that kept it at bay with her was courses of prednisolone which eventually stopped being effective also. Her life began with the removal of her bowel. This disease and it's treatments are like so many others, some work well for some people and not so well for others. Process of elimination until you find what works with very little or no side effects - it can be excruciatingly long-winded at times! Strangely we discovered how two sisters could react so differently to the meds and the disease!

[Annie31 in reply to Annie31]

NB: Salofalk tablets did not work, so it was the granules. Also nothing special about the yogurt drinks except for promoting healthy gut bacteria. Hope it helps!

[Walton-ymmy in reply to Annie31]

I was in your youngest daughter’s shoes, so I really feel for her. I agree with you that medications are hit and miss and they don’t suit everyone or every individual condition. I was taking Asacol MR and, Salofalk for my chronic Ulcerative Colitis and back then (3 years ago), it felt like I was living in a nightmare with all the side effects. The medications both gave me a regular headache, nausea, and even some nasty itching. Diarrhoea was there all the time, though I noticed a little bit of improvement. Nowadays, using probiotics for UC is a trend but again, it’s not one-size-fits-all. However, at least they're drug-free and many of the probiotics I’ve tried have no side effects. Among the tons of probiotics, I would choose liquid probiotics as they seem to have the most stable result. Been trying both liquid and non-liquid probiotics, mainly Spogest IB, Symprove, Aflorex, and Visbiome, but my experience with Spogest IB has been the best of all. After 20 days on it, my stool had a much more normal shape and amazingly, there was no blood or mucus at all, which made me so happy. Still in the process of using but I'm so positive about the alternative choice I've made. I hope this advice is helpful.

[Craigmondo in reply to Annie31]

Just to add. I was supplied Pentasa and it worked for the initial flare up but then did not work at all for future flare ups so I gave up. I tried to ride the storm for months with no hope but then when I tried the LiveSpo product it fixed the flare up within 48hours and I havent looked back. I really cant tell you how highly I rated the product, so I do hope Spogest is the same prodact as I will be purchasing that in future. Its not a medicine so it is worth a try for anyone with digestve issues. Forget the drinks and tablets, you need the vials as it can survive past the stomach and get to your intestines where it does its job of repairing.

[rg1987]

Hi, I have UC and I've been taking LiveSpo Colon probiotic, it's liquid and in plastic vials so looks similar to the one you mentioned. I was taking them with prednisolone and had no issues. Probiotics are definitely important especially during flares so I can definitely recommend taking them.

[Sam_Peter in reply to rg1987]

I haven't heard about it yet. But interestingly this probiotic is also in liquid form. How long did you have to take them to see the improvement? Just found some info about this and some said it's helped while others experienced worse symptoms at the beginning?

[rg1987 in reply to Sam_Peter]

I've been taking them since January as I had a flare around that time, then I was in hospital for a few days and then on prednisolone for about 8 weeks. The thing is that there are so many factors to consider when dealing with UC it's really not that easy to see what makes you better or worse and why, ie. medication, diet, stress and the UC itself. Taking probiotics didn't make me worse, but I can't tell you whether helped me or not. I believe that they played a part in my recovery and that probiotics are important especially for people with our condition.

[Hannes-ali09 in reply to rg1987]

I would say SpoGest over Lifespo. Anyone who has tried probiotics knows that most of them don't have a lasting effect and we often have to take them daily, which adds up to a huge amount of money. I took both Livespo and Spogest and I saw a clear difference. Lifespo gave me quite bad detoxing symptoms at first. Over the next 2 months, with a dose of 2 vials a day, I did notice an improvement in bloating but when I stopped taking it, the symptoms simply returned. Spogest did it better but has the same issue as Livespo: not very affordable. But, I say but, it works for a long time, even after I stopped using. My diarrhoea has improved a lot and it's safe to say I noticed no more abdominal pain. To be honest, I'm still nervous that the symptoms may be back at any time, so I think it’s better to stick with a minimal dose (half a vial per day).

[hallie1]

Probiotics are not a magical cure but rather a health supplement. While they do help some people see improvement in their symptoms, they just as often don’t work well for others.To be careful, I’d recommend you check with your IBD specialist before testing it out in your own body.

[Hannes-ali09]

I just ordered my first box on Jan 17th and am currently on the second box now. They advised me to take 1-2 vials per day but I just tried 1 vial to make sure there weren’t any side effects for me. The results are quite slow (maybe because I took a lower dose) but I did notice some positive change in my BM's. My poop is more sausage-like (lol) and my abdomen is far less painful. I'm continuing to take this for now and will update with more results soon.

[louiswins]

My wife has recently gone into an UC flare and took both Visbiome and SpoGest-IB (2 months separately). While Visbiome gave her stabbing stomach pain and didn't seem to help at all, SpoGest-IB works better for her symptoms so far. She now has regular bowel movements, less anxiety, and has gotten her appetite back. The only thing I didn't like about this product was the price. $30 for a 20-day supply is a bit over-priced for me.

[hwalker]

I have created this account just to tell you: Be careful with Livespo Colon probiotics! I had some really scary side effects from taking them daily, and they only got worse over time. Maybe this works for someone else but not me. In only a few days, I experienced bad mood swings, difficulty focusing, numbness, partial loss of feeling, and pain/tingling in both hands. Both of my hands started turning red, and it felt like I was losing circulation to them by the day. Really scary. The skin on the surface of my hands started to get extremely dry. I have also noticed what seem to be rashes that are roughly mosquito-bite sized on my back and feet.... (and my digestive disorders still trouble me to no end). So I'd be grateful if anyone here is ready to try SpoGest-IB and leave feedback. Can’t expect to live with those terrible symptoms any longer!

[Craigmondo]

Hi, I am 46 and was diagnosed with UC about three years ago. LiveSpo was a game changer and put me into remmision within a couple of days. The great part about taking it was you only need it when you have a flare up or feel bloated. It does not need to be taken regularly. I bought boxes of them once I knew they worked but they are now sitting there on the shelf as I have thankfully not seen a flare up for over a year. However I have just come to reorder (because mine are going to be out of date in a few months) from LiveSpo and they are no longer selling!!! Website not working, phone number cut off, Amazon account unavailable etc. This pannicked me as they are the only thing that worked for me. I have just messaged Spogest as it looks like they may have changed name. I hope it is the same product. If anyone else can advise if Spogest is the same as Livespo that would be a big help? Thanks,

[Pte82]

In addition to probiotics, look into delta tocotrienol and flavoniods such as Fisetin, Myricetin and Kaempferol for your ulcerative colitis. Always consult your health care professional before using any supplement.