Hi everyone - new member here. I've joined in some desperation to help my elderly Mum whose IBS-D is escalating with great detriment to her quality of life. She is probiotic-naive and has managed her IBS to date by limiting her diet and with judicious use of loperamide for flares, that's it. She has had a number of colonoscopies in recent years, had antibiotics a year ago for whooping cough, and takes lansoprazole among a number of other medications; so she has several risk factors for dysbiosis.
Based on my research so far the probiotic products which seem most likely to be efficacious (ie contain Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium strains) are Visbiome GI Care (112 billion CFU/capsule) and Seed DS-01 daily synbiotic (37 billion AFU), both refrigerated products. The daily dose of strains for each of these seems quite high though and am a bit concerned about worsening her symptoms and putting her off before she can complete an initial 4-week trial. But I could be overthinking it.
So my questions are: 1) do you have any experience with these products and can you recommend them, 2) are these products appropriate for the elderly or should I be looking at lower-potency products - if so which ones, 3) do you have any other comments or recommendations based on the above.
Thank you so much for any advice you can give.
Written by
LadyGrey72
To view profiles and participate in discussions please or .
Thanks Starfush - my understanding at the moment (am still learning) is that some individual studies have shown benefit from probiotics but the overall body of evidence is inconclusive. IBS seems to be such an individual experience it makes sense that certain interventions will work in some but not others. This is not an easy field to get your head around. I hope you managed to find something that has helped you. Will look into the role of Mg/Ca as am not familiar with that. All best to you.
Probiotics have not been shown to help in the management of IBS symptoms so personally I wouldn't bother. I did give it a go briefly and my D symptoms worsened.
Much better, thank you! Key for me was doing the FODMAP diet, which enabled me to discover my food triggers. I then made adjustments to my normal diet (cutting out most sugars and eating lots of gut-friendly foods such as good quality blue cheese and organic kefir yoghurt) and my IBS is now very well controlled.
Although IBS can't be cured, it can be well managed *if* you can find your triggers (and food isn't a trigger for everyone with IBS, but the FODMAP diet is a good way to find that out, and for me it was a massive help).
Gut-directed hypnotherapy is another treatment that has good outcomes for many people with IBS.
I have other health issues (COPD and peripheral neuropathy), so life is still a bit of a challenge sometimes, but at the moment everything is under control, and I am hugely grateful for the fact that I am able to live a more or less normal life at the moment!
Thanks for the further advice HelNel - all good suggestions I will look into. Sorry to hear about your other diagnoses - my Mum also has a number of background conditions, she is disabled and doesn't get out much, but the added burden of unpredictable diarrhoea is now affecting her quality of life the most. Very pleased that at least your IBS is manageable now - wishing you good health and happiness. x
I used to take 15 strains in probiotics then realised it was making me worse and my IBS was most IBS D. for the last 6 months or so, I have been taking only 6 strains with lower doses in each strain and I have suffered no diarrhoea. My bowel habits are more regular and normal with the occasional blip, of course I have to watch my diet constantly.
Hi Misspomfrey - you raise an interesting point that I was concerned about - this question of whether fewer probiotic strains are preferable in IBS than multiple strains. I think, given my Mum's age and general frailty, I am tending towards fewer strains and taking a slow and gradual approach to introducing probiotics. Happy that you are feeling better! Would you be open to sharing what specific probiotics you take? All the best.
I have tried many probiotics over the years and Alflorex has worked best for me and has helped many others, though not all since every person's IBS is different. It has been scientifically studied for IBS, only contains 1 strain of Bifdobacterium, which is passed from mother to baby during a natural birth to prime the gut's defences, so it is good at kicking bad bugs into touch. It also contains only 1 billion CFU when many contain 10 million plus. Studies show that IBS sufferers fare better on lower CFU products (less than 10 million). I have found that is has greatly improved my food tolerance and significantly reduced my IBS pain.
I tried a high CFU multi-strain probiotic once and had a vomiting episode. I think my body thought it was under attack. I had no side effects with Alflorex and started getting benefits after 1 week. However, some people have a bedding in period, when symptoms may get exacerbated for a couple of weeks, which hopefully settle. The ideal trial length is 3 months.
Hi xjrs - thanks very much for this. Am seeing Alflorex mentioned by a number of IBS sufferers and will investigate further. I like the idea of low CFU/single strain for the reasons discussed above and it is interesting that you noted there is some scientific evidence to support that approach in IBS. Appreciate you - hope you are keeping well.
I would strongly suggest you look into Elixa probiotics (very high dose six day course). The website has very useful articles/short videos, and explains the rationale underpinning the product/approach. Karl who founded the company is very knowledgeable, intelligent and helpful. It's well worth contacting him for advice (I know that he recommends half dose for children). I am a little underweight, nearly 65 and have had a chronic illness for 20 years...and only noticed a slight headache and tiredness for first couple of days (stools were already loose). (I'd preceded my course with 21 days of Saccharomyces boulardii as it happens). It may be that a course of Elixa probiotics would prove to me no more debilitating than the symptoms that your mother is already experiencing.
The other item that may be worth considering/researching and maybe trying first, is Tributyrin. It decreases inflammation in the colon and helps the cells lining the colon to work better, so absorbing more fluid and decreasing the liquidity of the stools. It worked very well for me, and as my situation (D) has improved I have decreased from 3 capsules per day to one every three days!
Wishing your mother well, and you too of course in your endeavour to help her!
Hi Bracondale - thanks for all the information - really interesting! I will look into Elixa and Tributyrin - thank you. Sounds like you have done a lot of research into this and am very glad you found an approach that helped. Thanks for the kind words about my Mum too x
Hi lowraind - thanks for asking - yes but without much specific help or advice being offered by the GP. The attitude was pretty much 'this can be a really difficult long-term condition to manage *shrug*'. But she did refer my Mum to a dietician who was able to offer advice on nutrition and common triggers. One of the challenges with the GP's recommendation of the usual measures - basically loperamide for flares - is that my Mum is pretty sensitive to it and she then enters a constipation/diarrhoea cycle that just perpetuates symptoms. It's really vexing. Hope you are ok and keeping well yourself.
Content on HealthUnlocked does not replace the relationship between you and doctors or other healthcare professionals nor the advice you receive from them.
Never delay seeking advice or dialling emergency services because of something that you have read on HealthUnlocked.
Ibs-d & cramping advice. 
do probiotics really help with bloating and gas of IBS?
probiotics for IBS-C 
Hints and tips for what has helped me with my IBS-D!
Advice on food which triggers ibs
