Does anyone know?

[greylow]

Why, after cutting out certain foods, taking probiotics etc, doesn't the good bacteria return to pre ibs levels and our stomachs return to normal?

[Luisa22]

So it sounds like maybe you have tried both these things (probiotics and diet changes) and your tummy is still not right?

That's probably because most often there is more to IBS that can be fixed with these two things.

Some people have wonderful response to probiotics. Some, it makes them worse, others, not much change. The low Fodmap diet can really help, or it can help just a little, and with some people it doesn't help much at all.

[Iesgobdafydd]

A possible reason would be that one of the original types of bacteria that had a home in your gut from infancy onwards was completely eliminated as a result of antibiotics or illness. If that's what happened, using a probiotic that contains it can allow it to re-establish, or being exposed to it in your environment and getting it back inside you that way; since there's likely to be a lot of overlap in gut flora between yourself and any of your birth mother, your siblings, and (if female) your biological children, then living with any of them can potentially do this. Different probiotics contain different mixes of bacteria, so having tried any number of probiotics doesn't guarantee you're not still missing a strain that's important to you.

Of course, cutting out certain foods and taking probiotics also might not have addressed the root cause of the problem. For instance if your IBS was caused by stress and you continue to lead a stressful life then probiotics and avoiding certain foods might not be enough to prevent IBS symptoms.

[greylow in reply to Iesgobdafydd]

Thank you both for your replies

[winfong]

I think we're talking about super-complex systems here. Hard to account for everything going on by just looking at only one or two variables.

[corpgov10]

The often ignored answer: because probiotics are often a scam. Real food sources of probiotics - yoghurt - plus intense exercise have been the game changer for me. Powders and liquids sold online rarely work. Don't fall for it!

[Meleber]

I'm not sure if you ever can restore the microbiome in your guts if it has already been put out of balance (dysbiosis) since your early childhood because of all kind of external factors like taking recurrent courses of an antibiotic e.g. penicillin because of an underlying disease, not having been breastfed and a mother with an inbalanced microbiome (that is actually my situation 😉 ). Probiotics only work transient as far as I am aware, you need to take them continuously if you finally found one strain that's actually helpful in your specific situation. The ones I tried didn't work for me so I stopped trying, also because it's too expensive.

"Probiotic Gastrointestinal Transit and Colonization After Oral Administration: A Long Journey"

source:

frontiersin.org/articles/10...