\u2714\ufe0f Opt for third-party-tested supplements from a reputable brand.\u201cIt is important to note that most over-the counter probiotics are not FDA-approved because they have not been studied in clinical trials,\u201d says Dr. Pazwash. That\u2019s why you always want to make sure that you\u2019re purchasing them from a reputable brand. Ideally, you should also opt for supplements that are third-party-tested. \u201c[It\u2019s important] to buy from a reputable company that conducts ongoing clinical research,\u201d says Gans.<\/p>\n
\u2714\ufe0f Choose the right strain. There are countless different kinds of probiotic strains out there\u2014and you\u2019ll want to find ones that are \u201cclinically studied for the intended health benefit,\u201d says Mitmesser. The most well-studied strains, according to Dr. Pazwash, are Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium. \u201cResearch has shown that strains of Lactobacillus plantarum, Bifidobacterium infantis, and Lactobacillus acidophilus may be best to decrease bloating,\u201d says Gans.<\/p>\n
\u2714\ufe0f Consider the CFU count. Probiotics are measured in CFUs, or colony forming units, which represent the number of live bacteria per dose. A higher number does not necessarily mean better results, but it may be more effective for certain conditions. Gans says it\u2019s ideal to opt for a minimum of 25 billion for general gut health, and a minimum of 100 billion for IBS patients or patients seeing a gastroenterologist.<\/p>\n
\u2714\ufe0f Check for other ingredients, like prebiotics. Some probiotic supplements also contain prebiotics, which promotes the growth of \u201cgood\u201d gut microbes and may enhance the effectiveness of probiotics. Additionally, if you have certain dietary restrictions or health conditions, you should always check the label to verify that the probiotic is free of gluten, lactose, allergens, or any other potentially unwanted ingredients.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u2714\ufe0f Opt for third-party-tested supplements from a reputable brand.\u201cIt is important to note that most over-the counter probiotics…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":574494,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[49,48,84,6707,395],"class_list":{"0":"post-574493","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nutrition","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-health","11":"tag-most-popular","12":"tag-nutrition"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/574493","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=574493"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/574493\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/574494"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=574493"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=574493"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=574493"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}