1st time on antibiotics--Culturelle okay?

[ttcintexas]

My DD (5.5 yrs) is on her first ever round of antibiotics. She was complaining of extreme ear pain. Took her in and she has a double ear infection. This has happened before and we have treated with homeopathy. This time one of her eardrums was a 9 on a scale with 10 be rupturing. Our pedi knows I don't like to give antibiotics and has been great with this in the past. But she said that with it this close to rupturing, she'd give them. Husband agreed when I asked his opinion. I was very reluctant because I don't want to mess with her gut.

Long story to ask about dosing with probiotics throughout the round of antibiotics. I have read to give probiotics three hours after the antibiotics. She is to take the rx two times a day. I gave her one at 6pm. Do I wake her at 9pm to give her the probiotic? Also, I have Culturelle for kids (1 billion cells) in the house. Is this adequate or do I need Florastor? Oh, and I also have Culturelle for adults (10 billion cells) and Jarro-Dophilus +FOS (3.4 billion per capsule) Anything else I should be doing?

Thanks.

[pianojazzgirl]

I would give the florastor.

[mamefati28]

get her some kids florastor for sure!

[ttcintexas]

Can I buy this at a local drugstore? And can I give her Culturelle in the meantime? I plan to go in and wake her up soon to give her some. Don't think I can get the Florastor tonight.

[ttcintexas]

Ok, now I'm even more confused. I just read these after search the threads for Florastor.

"During [antibiotics] I take Culturelle. It is really good with antibiotics and widely available. I do it at least two weeks after as well and then continue with something that colonizes (Klaire labs complete is a really good one).
If you can get it florastor (s. boulardi) is great with antibiotics. It's the one probiotic that antibiotics can't kill. It's also great with the really nasty bacterias and with yeast. But it's harder to get usually."

"Saccharomyces boulardii is a yeast which is why antibiotics wouldn't kill it. I don't know much about Florastor, but I'd be careful about taking something that is a yeast if you're worried about yeast overgrowth due to antibiotic use."

Woke her up and gave her some Culturelle about 30 minutes ago.

[sbgrace]

Florstor is good because the antibiotic can't kill it. Each time you dose the antibiotic you are killing off any probiotic.

That's why I do culturelle (good one for antibiotics--second to florastor in my book and I use both with antibiotics) three hours after every dose. Some people say it's better to give it half way between doses. I'm not sure and feel the florastor covers me either way.

I do wake my son for probiotics with antibiotics like you did.

I hope she's better soon.

Do give probiotics after she's done.

[ttcintexas]

Thanks SBGrace. She was feeling much better yesterday evening and today. I am reluctant to do the Florastor due the the above quoted comment about it being a yeast. Do you have info that shows that it wouldn't cause a yeast overgrowth when used with antibiotics? I guess you have experience with this not being a problem, or you wouldn't be using it. Do you give both the Culturelle and Florastor at 3 hours post antibiotic? I will have to do more like four hours to prevent having to take it to her at school. She's only taking the AB two times a day, so this puts it about mid-dosing.

One other question, she is on amoxicillin. I read somewhere that this may be the "gentlest" of the ABs and doesn't actually kill the bad bacteria, but stops it from multiplying. Anyone with info on this? Does it kill the good? I will keep doing the probiotic, but maybe I will worry less about damaging her gut if I know it's not killing all the good flora.

Thanks for all your info.

[mama1803]

Originally Posted by ttcintexas

Ok, now I'm even more confused. I just read these after search the threads for Florastor.

But it's harder to get usually."

"Saccharomyces boulardii is a yeast which is why antibiotics wouldn't kill it. I don't know much about Florastor, but I'd be careful about taking something that is a yeast if you're worried about yeast overgrowth due to antibiotic use."

First, s. boulardii is not hard to get. I buy the Jarrow brand from iHerb--inexpensive and does not need refrigeration. It is also abundant in GT Daves kombucha.

I would not worry about yeast overgrowth with s. boulardii. It wipes out the bad yeast (like what is associated with vaginal yeast infections) and does not allow it to proliferate. But something needs to take the space that is left open when the s. boulardii destroy the harmful yeast. This is why it is a good idea to take a probiotic with multiple strains to colonize the gut in the absence of the harmful yeast.

[ttcintexas]

mama1803--You are right about not hard to get. My local grocery store has the adult Florastor at the pharmacy and said they could kid the kids version by tomorrow.

Still not sure what/how I should be giving Culturelle and/or Florastor (in the meantime just giving Culturelle three to four hours after AB). Mama1803, you said a probiotic with multiple strains should be given with Florastor--do you give this at the same time (i.e. 3-4 hours after AB), and does this mean Culturelle is not adequate as it is only lactobacillus? If Culturelle is ok during the AB course, is it also enough to support the gut following the course?

Sorry for all the questions. I appreciate all the info on this forum. Thanks.

[mama1803]

Originally Posted by ttcintexas

mama1803--You are right about not hard to get. My local grocery store has the adult Florastor at the pharmacy and said they could kid the kids version by tomorrow.

Still not sure what/how I should be giving Culturelle and/or Florastor (in the meantime just giving Culturelle three to four hours after AB). Mama1803, you said a probiotic with multiple strains should be given with Florastor--do you give this at the same time (i.e. 3-4 hours after AB), and does this mean Culturelle is not adequate as it is only lactobacillus? If Culturelle is ok during the AB course, is it also enough to support the gut following the course?

Sorry for all the questions. I appreciate all the info on this forum. Thanks.

I personally do not think that Culturelle is adequate to support the gut after the antibiotics, but it is fine to take along with the Florastor during antibiotics. There are trillions of bacteria and yeasts in the gut and they keep one another in balance--that is why some suggest multiple strains be taken. Too much of one can create an imbalance.

This website has loads of info, including suggestions of certain brands and where to buy them.

http://www.enzymestuff.com/probiotics.htm

And please don't worry about all the questions--we are all here learning and trying our best to keep our families healthy! So ask away!!

HTH

[ttcintexas]

Mama1803--Your info is so helpful. Thanks for the link.

So I am understanding that if I am doing Culturelle now (during antibiotics) you think I should also add the Florastor, but that after the antibiotics I should do a multi-strain probiotic such as Florajen4Kids (http://www.florajen.com/products-florajen4kids.shtml) or Houston's (http://www.houston-enzymes.com/). Is that right? Or could I just replace the Culturelle/Florastor combo with a multi-strain probiotic now and continue after the course of antibiotics? I currently have Jarro-Dophilus +FOS at home. It doesn't specify for kids or adults. It has 3.4 billion organisms including L. rhamnosus R0011, L. casei R0215 and B. lactis BL-04. Would this be a good multi-strain one to use?

Lastly, when I am giving Culturelle and Florastor together, can I actually give them both at the same time--3 to 4 hours after the antibiotic dose?

I just worry that in trying to help her stay healthy, I will end up doing something that actually throws her out of whack.

Thanks again.

[ttcintexas]

Ok, bought some FlorastorKids today. It has fructose and "tutti-frutti flavor?" Not so excited about that, especially since one of her probiotic doses is about 10:30pm--she barely wakes up, I'm not going to have her brush her teeth at that time. Why is none of this easy?

[sbgrace]

Amoxicillin will kill off the good bacteria, yes. But sometimes antibiotics are necessary.

I wish I would have seen this. You could have done the adult florastor and then no flavorings.

Generally, I like the florastor because it survives any antibiotic so you're never without protection. I add in the culturelle as well but he's carrying nasties already.

You can't overdose probiotics so giving both together is fine. That said, Florastor could be given at any time of day since it will survive the antibiotic so just give it at a point where you will be brushing teeth later--not in the night.

Floastor is not a yeast that will cause yeast issues and in fact is very good with controlling those bad yeasts. Florastor will not live and multiply in the body so when you stop it all will be gone within a few days or sooner. So I tend to keep going with it for a couple of weeks post antibiotic while I also give a colonizing probiotic a chance to get in and take hold. In my opinion it's a waste to give those colonizing type strains while on antibiotics though as they just get wiped out every time and there are specific strains (as in the Culturelle and Florastor) which are better for antibiotics anyway.

[ttcintexas]

Thanks SBGrace! I may be able to return the kids Florastor, or go get the adult kind later. Would I give my 40lb DD the regular dose? You are right, I forgot that the whole point (or major +) of the Florastor is that the AB doesn't kill it--great to not have to worry about timing. Love all the knowledge here!

[sbgrace]

Originally Posted by ttcintexas

Thanks SBGrace! I may be able to return the kids Florastor, or go get the adult kind later. Would I give my 40lb DD the regular dose? You are right, I forgot that the whole point (or major +) of the Florastor is that the AB doesn't kill it--great to not have to worry about timing. Love all the knowledge here!

I give my 30's pound son two adult florastor and two adult culturelle each day (and regular as well) as he's got issues. You really can't overdose on probiotics.

[ttcintexas]

You can't "overdose" but can't you create an imbalance?

[sbgrace]

Originally Posted by ttcintexas

You can't "overdose" but can't you create an imbalance?

Not in this case--
You're killing off the Culturelle twice a day.

Neither of the strains you are using (florastor or culturelle) will actually colonize and repopulate in the body so when you stop them they die in a pretty short time leaving whatever else you have going to take over. They are very good at crowding out bad guys though so in my son's case I want those "crowders" as he carries c. diff. For healthy people you would want a range of strains and you will supply those for her when she's free and clear of picking up anything nasty while on the antibiotics. From my experience with my son I recommend a person give it a couple of weeks with at least florastor as a protection post antibiotic while you build up those other bacteria species.

[ttcintexas]

So much to learn! Ok, so as of today I am giving her both Culturelle and Florastor (will do kids until I need more and then I'll switch to the not-so-tasty adult). If I understand what you are saying, this is good for now while on AB so as to crowd out any yuckies that might find their way in. Then when she is done with the ABs, I should continue with the Florastor for a couple of weeks. Now at that point do I replace the Culturelle with a multi-strain probiotic to repopulate/colonize? The Florastor will continue to crowd out the bad while the multi-strain does it's job a replacing the good? She is pretty healthy, and I want to keep her that way