November 27th, 2012
By Craig Fear
Probiotics are one of the two supplements I regularly use with clients (the other being fermented cod liver oil).
I’ve seen so many people benefit from taking probiotics and that includes myself.
So then why did I stop taking probiotics in supplement form? And why do I recommend to my clients that they stop taking them as well?
Well there used to be one simple reason (see #3 below) but after seeing Sandor Katz speak at the recent Weston Price Foundation conference, I now have two additional reasons.
The first reason is that probiotic supplements are proprietary strains. That means they are formulated in laboratories by companies so they can be patented and then sold for profit. Not that there is anything wrong with that. Many companies put out effective probiotic supplements. Dozens of studies using probiotic therapy show benefits in treating IBS, constipation, diarrhea, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis and many other digestive issues.
However, few studies have ever been done with actual fermented foods. Why?
Because you can’t patent sauerkraut. Or kimchi. Or any food for that matter.
According to Dr. Mercola on his website, one serving of fermented vegetables has 100 times more beneficial bacteria than an entire bottle of a high potency probiotic product!
And let’s not forget that fermented foods are a part of the diet of every traditional culture on this planet. They have been around as long as humans have been around. It is only recently with the advent of refrigeration and processed foods that many industrialized societies have stopped using traditionally fermented foods.
Katz brought up another interesting point regarding probiotic therapy.
In the first chapter of his new book, The Art of Fermentation, Katz conveys the great mystery of the evolution of bacteria on our planet and the incredible ways in which they communicate, evolve and transform all life, including human beings.
“We know more about the stars in the sky than about the soil under our feet” says microbiologist Elaine Ingham.
Katz depicts bacteria as co-evolvers or even co-creationists in the dance of Life and that they are more influential to our lives and all life on the planet than we can ever realize.
We have not evolved separately from bacteria. We have evolved together and sure enough we could not exist without them.
Recent research shows that bacteria freely exchange genetic material.
This flow of genes allow bacteria to rapidly evolve and adapt to new conditions. It’s the inherent problem with the widespread use of antibiotics in both humans and livestock. Bacteria can adapt quickly and become resistant setting the stage for new diseases and health epidemics.
Katz points out that some microbiologists believe bacteria are not truly distinct species but exist as a continuum across the planet, exchanging and utilizing genes which makes them highly adaptable to so many vastly different living conditions. In fact, the human microbiome, that is, the totality of all the microorganisms that reside on and in human beings, contains one hundred times more genes than human beings.
A recent MIT study also found that the bacteria that reside on and in humans are 25 times more likely to exchange genes than non-human bacteria. Nobody knows why but we know that just as humans are adaptable to almost every climate and landscape on earth, so are bacteria adaptable to all the micro-climates and micro-landscapes of the human body. Armpits, eyebrows, toenails, gums, stomach and intestines all offer vastly different niches for different strains of bacteria.
In fact, scientists at North Carolina State University found 1400 strains of bacteria that reside just in the human belly button, half of which have never been identified before.
Of course, the majority of the human microbiome resides in our gut and the research on these intestinal bacteria is nothing short of mind-blowing, literally speaking. In addition to playing vital roles in our physical health, it turns out they may be able to influence our mental health as well.
Before I get too far out on a tangent, what that means for us is that specific strains of bacteria may not be as important as once thought. In other words, probiotic therapy is based on the belief that certain strains are vital for our health. And so we take these capsules with billions of strains of Lactobacillus and/or Bifidobacteria and maybe a few others. Every company has a different formulation of different strains with different studies and reasons why their formulation is best.
However, the genetic fluidity of bacteria suggests that variety and diversity may be more beneficial than specific strains.
This is certainly what Katz believes.
And it makes sense to me as well. After all, if there are hundreds of newly identified bacteria in our belly buttons, who knows how many have yet to be discovered in fermented foods?
So while a probiotic supplement may offer help, over the long term I think it’s more important to regularly incorporate Nature’s true probiotics, fermented foods.
This is why I stopped and this is when I tell my clients to stop. Nevertheless, many people continue to take pricey probiotic supplements for preventative reasons.
While I think that’s safer than taking drugs like statins for preventative reasons, remember, fermented foods give us a far greater variety and complexity of beneficial bacteria than probiotic supplements. While we can’t deny the benefits of probiotic supplementation, over the long term I trust the thousands of years of fermented foods in the human diet more than laboratory formulations.
Give me fermented foods over supplements any day.
Much tastier too.
While you certainly can find good sources of fermented foods in your local health food store (including a few on my resources page), it’s a lot more rewarding (and cost efficient) to make them at home.
All my clients learn about the health benefits of fermented foods. In my 3 month program I usually spend an entire class teaching people about their benefits with tips and handouts for how to make them at home.
And my absolute favorite week of my 12 week weight loss program is when I teach people how to make sauerkraut and kimchi.
Want to learn? It’s so easy! Pick up a copy of Wild Fermentation or Katz’ new more expansive book on the subject, The Art of Fermentation.
You can also check out my videos on YouTube:
Good luck!
This post is a part of Fight Back Friday and GAPS Friendly Friday.
Photo credit: Day 362 by SuperFantastic
Hi, my name is Craig Fear. And yes, that 's my real last name. Welcome to Fearless Eating, my blog about traditional foods where I dismantle common food myths and help you eat, well... fearlessly!
I'm also a certified Nutritional Therapist as well as a GAPS certified practitioner. My practice, Pioneer Valley Nutritional Therapy, is located in Northampton, Massachusetts.
I couldn’t agree more! I’ve been researching this topic a lot lately. I also have a problem with how the probiotics are processed and the other junk they put in the capsules. It is nearly impossible to be sure you are actually ingesting the live bacteria that the bottle claims. I think probiotics are just a waste of money. Kefir, lacto-fermented veggies, homemade yogurt, kombucha… that is the best source of probiotics!
Love Love Love this post! Excellent! I recently stopped buying and taking the store bought kind as well. I kept thinking – I am eating sauerkraut and drinking kefir – why am I forking over $40 for a bottle that isn’t going to add anything?! Sharing!
Thanks Lindsey!
Thank you so much for posting this extremely informational article. I have never been a fan of supplements as they are not natural and are processed in a lab, however I had been debating buying some probiotics for my family and I. This article just reiterated what my gut instinct was already telling me. I have been fermenting foods and drinking kefir and that is much cheaper than buying a supplement that I cannot fully trust will do more than these natural foods. You just saved me a lot of money
Thank you!
welcome!
haha “gut” instinct
Your article brings up an interesting point.
i have a question for you. do you know what amines are? naturally occurring food chemicals present in all aging foods. my daughter and i have amines problems and haven’t been able to tolerate ferments. how can we get past this?
Hi Lisa,
I’ve heard of people having issues with this but haven’t spent enough time researching it myself to help you. Best of luck to you.
HI Lisa,
Your issue with homemade ferments may be more with the method of fermenting – most ferments should be done anaerobically and out of direct light – with specific ranges of salinity and duration – I have found numerous folks with gut issues able to enjoy and more importantly heal through properly prepared ferments – cabbage is generally not fermented or cured lomg enough when sold commercially – plus the manner of transport and container further diminishes the happy bacteria that you are trying to add…
Hi Craig,
I just discovered your site and love your approach. I’d love it if you would share this and other GAPS related posts each week with my readers at GAPS Friendly Fridays! You can join this week’s blog carnival at http://theliberatedkitchenpdx.com/gaps/gaps-friendly-friday-21/
See you around,
Joy
OK Joy, will do. Let’s connect on social media outlets as well. And FYI, I am a GAPS certified practitioner.
Hi again, Craig,
My handle on facebook, pinterest, tumblr, and twitter is kitchenlib
Thanks for sharing on GAPS Friendly Friday. I’m following you on facebook and pinterest now
Our family has been on the GAPS Diet for nearly 2 years now, and we’ve been blogging all along, solving/improving on issues including arthritis, myriad digestive troubles, sensory processing disorder, dyslexia, eczema, asthma, bipolar disorder, migraines, other neurological issues, and more.
While I am not a health care practitioner, I provide coaching and hands on help to people who are going 100% gluten-free, as well as practical help and advice for people (especially families) taking on Paleo/GAPS/SCD type diets. A big part of my coaching focuses on helping people build and work with a team of qualified health care practitioners.
I’m looking forward to reading more of your posts!
Joy
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Great article Craig, very informative. Interestingly, the main reason I discontinued commercial probiotics was economics. All of the things I ferment, such as kefir, kombucha, natto, sauerkraut and etc. replenish themselves and even multiply so you can give them away. I also have a huge distrust of commercial sources of anything eatable or ingestable. As I use Sandor’s book a lot and find the whole regime of fermentation fascinating, your article, which makes a lot of sense to me, is very helpful in my growing understanding of the process. So, thanks!
Hi Jim, thanks for sharing. I’m impressed that you ferment natto at home. That’s a lot more rare than say, sauerkraut. Glad you enjoyed the article. Happy fermenting!
Ahh yes natto. If more people realized how critical vitamin K2 is to bone development and maintenance and how excellent a source of K2 natto is it would be a lot more popular. But that might put some dentists out of pocket
Why is it always the dentist? Could you talk more about K2 and mouth health? Resources? thanks!
“While we can’t deny the benefits of probiotic supplementation, over the long term I trust the thousands of years of fermented foods in the human diet more than laboratory formulations.” Hear, hear! Great post, Craig!
Hey Emily, thanks!
I agree with everything in the article, however, that being said I would say that 90% of my clients are never going to touch a fermented food and the sad reality is that they want a pill to make it better. So I still recommend probiotic supplements knowing that it is better than nothing and that at least we can ease their symptoms and repair the gut in some degree. However, I do test for the which one is needed, I don’t blindly recommend any product without making sure it is the right supplement for that particular person. Of course fermented is best but I would say if someone isn’t willing to do that than a probiotic supplement is still a viable option.
Hi Kristy, I totally hear what you’re saying and that’s why I still use probiotics. 90% though seems a bit high. I certainly have a few clients that don’t like fermented foods but most seem to come around to it over time. Most people at least like cultured dairy. We also have several great local companies here in western MA selling fermented vegetables which makes it easier as well. Just curious, where do you practice?
As a Naturopathic Physician, I often prescribe high quality probiotics to my patients, often with great results. I love the idea of fermented veggies as medicine, but for some of my patients the idea of all of that work/effort/time is going to turn them off immediately. Do you know of any good quality fermented foods that they can buy while they are getting used to the idea and healing their digestive systems in the meantime?
(And speaking of costly supplements, I was intrigued by all I’ve read about fermented CLO and ordered my first bottle from Green Pastures which ended up costing $59! Yikes! Not sustainable for my family of 5 or for most of my patients).
Hi Nicole,
Yes, it’s great to have some good companies to recommend to your clients. Most health food stores stock some decent brands. I’d highly recommend getting to know what your local area has to offer. You can also check out my resources page for some companies that you can mail order from: http://www.pvnutritionaltherapy.com/resources/#fermented
Immunitrition also offers a nice line of fermented veggies: http://www.culturedvegetables.net/
great article, sharing. my question is about wild ferments vs starter culture ferments. if we innoculate with starter culture then aren’t we encouraging the processed/limited strain cultures to multiple, perhaps overpowering what native species might be on the veg? i rarely wild ferment because they are so much riskier, i end up losing batches, lots of time and money spent on getting veg, fermenting it, then have to toss it when a wild ferment goes awry.
this makes me think i should focus more on mastering wild ferments vs relying on starter cultures…
thanks for your work, research, thoughts
Hi Jenna, although I can’t say for sure, I wouldn’t think the starter cultures “overpower” the native species. Starter cultures are beneficial in their own right and have been used for thousands of years. As for not using starter cultures, what about using a little whey? I know that’s technically a bit of a starter culture itself but I’ve never lost a batch of fermented veggies when I use it.
oh, and until practicioners stop catering to lazy non-compliant patients, patients will continue to be lazy and non-compliant expecting the magic bullets that DO NOT EXIST to return to health.
this is the same as a kinder teacher letting kids watch sesame street all day to build and foster language development instead of encouraging them to actually learn to read and write. it’s nonsense. i’m glad you are encouraging your patients to do health the right way. the true way. with discipline and effort and real true health.
we must all be health educators. educators teach patients. not just what ails them and a pill to swallow (supplements are hardly better than rx) but how to ACTUALLY, REALLY heal by making ENORMOUS life-style changes.
just sayin’
i take this same approach to food literacy education. it aint simple teaching a child to love real food. it takes daily practice, and the skill and effort to make that food relevant to them. to take a child from not knowing why they should fuel up with real clean non-toxic food instead of frankenfood, to knowing why and choosing it themselves even when tempting factory food abounds at all gatherings outside the house.
Really enjoyed this post! I’ve never had much success with probiotics and always suspected the dose to be waaayyy to small and the range of bacteria too narrow. Thanks for filling us in
This post brings up interesting points. However, I cannot imagine our lives without the use of probiotics. At 2 years old my son greatly benefited the use of probiotics, and continues to do so. There would have been no way, still no way, I could get this child (or any of my kids) to eat a fermented food. I personally have no desire to eat a fermented food.
We are so grateful of the benefits of probiotics and I agree with another commenter…if fermented foods are not an option probiotics are the next best thing. Plus, there are benefits.
@Jennifer, probiotics are not replacements for fermented foods. There are so many more benefits to fermented foods beyond just their beneficial bacteria content – higher vitamin content and rich in enzymes to name a few. Of course probitoics are beneficial, but we shouldn’t exclusively rely on them. To say you have “no desire to eat a fermented food” is a bit of a head scratcher. Do you eat cheese? Yogurt? Sourdough bread? Coffee? Wine? Cured meats like salami? All fermented.
I agree, but…I think probiotic supplements are like vitamin supplements: ideally we would be getting everything we need from our food, but either to make up the difference (because of inadequate diet and/or just declining food quality in recent years) and/or in the meantime ’til we get “caught up,” they can be beneficial.
I have never seen any truly fermented foods for sale. (I can buy kefir, for instance, but it’s not REAL kefir.) There’s a learning curve involved in making them. And, frankly, there’s a “learning curve” involved in eating them. We hate fermented foods. I think saeurkraut and kefir are some of the most awful-tasting things ever invented. I wish I didn’t – and we’re working on it – but I do.
So it’s pretty harsh of certain commenters to say that patients are “lazy” and “non-compliant” because they can’t/won’t just overnight make and consume completely new foods that take education to learn how to make, and a pretty decent investment of TIME. Especially given that most people are seeing a doctor because they’re SICK – i.e. don’t have a normal amount of energy. When I first started seeing my ND for adrenal burnout, I would have probably given up from sheer overwhelm if she’d said the only way for me to get better was to start spending a few more hours a week making some new foods I’d never heard of!
And I’ve just written a book here…lol The short version being: I totally agree that fermented foods are BETTER and that, ideally, we wouldn’t need the pills, but I still think that the pills serve their purpose in certain situations.
(Oh, and btw, you seem to have Pinned the “preview draft” link to this post – might want to check that.)
What a fab article. I always say make sauerkraut as it is far cheaper than a probiotic. I’d prefer to eat a “transformed cabbage” but it is a habit and a pill is easier if you have not made sauerkraut before.
I was nervous of making sauerkraut before I had made it. BUT be brave… give it a go and bash a cabbage into sauerkraut!
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Exactly what honestly moved u to post “Three Reasons to Stop Taking Probiotics | Pioneer Valley Nutritional Therapy”?
I personallygenuinely adored the post! Thanks a lot ,Daniella
thanks for taking the time to provide us with educational insights for taking control over our health. i know this may seem like a silly idea, perhaps those individuals who can’t/won’t eat fermented foods try putting the same fermented foods in capsules and take them like the probiotic pills they would buy instead. i don’t know if this is a viable solution but it seems like it would be worth a shot.
Hi Josh, that’s pretty much what probiotics are – fermented foods in pill form but without complexity, diversity and other health benefits of the actual food. If it’s really a problem, I would recommend starting with just a teaspoon or two and slowly build up. You could also mix some probiotic juices from sauerkraut or pickles and either drink it straight or mix it with some water to hide the taste and slowly build up.
Hello, interesting article, if we have to protect pro-biotic supplements from the harsh environment of the stomach but not feremented foods, how do the bacteria survive. Surely the acid would kill them?
Nev, the bacteria in fermented foods survive the acidity of the stomach.