Hi folks
My gut is giving me trouble at the moment. I have had flare-ups of IBS but also many other problems. I am going to chat it through with my endo next week but I was wondering if a digestive enzyme and a probiotic may help. If so would you recommend any please?
Have you tried kefir Elmear78 much cheaper alternative,widely available in the supermarkets now and quite pleasant if you get the flavoured drinks.
just go slowly to start.have a google for best tips on usage.good luck.
I have seen kefir and was toying with making kombucha
Are you lactose free?if not I suggest you go immediately. I also have ibs and if I have a flure I drink buscopan wich you can easily find over the counter.you also need to find what are the worst food for you and stop eating them.last year I have been to a gastroenterologist who suggested that I should take antibiotics and probiotics. After taking them I felt like I never had ibs.since then I stopped having milk for months.i now have it in my coffee occasionally. But I avoid onions,white cabbage,celery and some other food I know they harm my guts.i hope you find something that can help you.
Organic apple cider vinegar with the probiotic gunk (the mother) at the bottom of the bottle might help raise your stomach acid & improve your digestion. Water with lemon before meals might help, too. Also kefir if you can tolerate dairy, though there's water kefir grains available. I ferment my own dairy kefir which has a symbiosis of lactobacollus, yeast & streptococcus that are strong enough to withstand our digestive system & kill off bad gut bacteria. It's sold as grains that look like tiny cauliflower florets, to ferment at home by adding organic wholemilk. It's as easy to do as making a pot of tea, though the starter culture might take a few weeks to revive before it tastes good. The grains eat the lactose first so it's ok for most people unless they're severely lactose intolerant or have a reaction to casein. There's shop bought kefir available, but not all are organic. Commercial kefir has only strains of lactobacillus, so it's basically drinking yoghurt. It isn't very live or the bottles would explode on the shop shelves.
Where did you buy your original kefir grains? I bought some from the internet but got nasty effects from it.
I got mine from the internet, too. They were only a few millimetres & took some mollycoddling before it became pleasant enough to drink. I had to throw away the kefir for about three weeks as it was disgusting, after that the taste improved & the grains started growing rapidly from 10g to 300g in another month. I tried posting some to someone, one batch coated in dried organic milk & another in as little milk as I thought wouldn't cause leakage or an explosion. I picked out the biggest grains of about 15mm in diameter but they didn't survive. I did suggest splitting the grains as the microcritters inside would be protected by those on the outside but the person that I sent them to didn't bother. I think posting them in organic double cream with pieces of mango might be an effective way to keep them happy as it would take them a few days to eat that. I discovered feeding it fruit in winter, or when I put it in the fridge for several days, keeps it happy as otherwise it doesn't taste so good if it's chilled or fed on milk that's not from grass fed cows.
have you tried freezing them?
I got stomach upset, bloating and headaches, so I steer clear now.
Make sauerkraut instead, which is a bit hit or miss but keeps my tummy happy.
I haven’t needed to freeze them, but wonder if that was why my grains were unhappy.
Good you found an alternative. I made sauerkraut once & had a bad reaction. I’ve previously bought what was supposed to be a live jar but assume that’s like shop bought kefir.
Hi I take Biocare's Spectrumzyme as and when I need it and I must say it works brilliantly. Also take Bioshield's Daily Probiotic which again is very good both of which are available on Amazon
I have just ordered some digestive enzymes last night, so can try to remember to let you know how I get on with them.
I googled "best digestive enzymes UK" and found a list of the top 10. Lambert's Digestizyme was second on the list, so I've ordered that (couldn't get the first on the list). It's £16 for the bottle.
Probiotics, a nutritionist recommended EcoGest, so that's what I use. They're lactobacillus based. Lactobacillus doesn't suit everyone though, in which case you can try Acidophillus or Saccromyces Boullardi (might have spelled them wrong).
You should give this a listen by the way, explains how digestive enzyme deficiencies affect you and which ones you're potentially lacking: coconutsandkettlebells.com/...
Digestive Enzymes
Which Digestive Enzymes?
HCL & Pepsin / Digestive Enzymes reaction
Pro biotics or digestive enzymes 
