Kefir Question

[zinnia1]

Hi everyone- finished 14 days of vanco one week ago. Not a good day today- I am one who doesn't do to well w/strong probioitcs- even before c-diff. Have been taking culturelle. Everyone seems to rave about kefir so bought some today (lactose free) and have been taking sips thru out day.
I am very bubbly, gassy feeling. Don't know if that is a continuation of my already bad day, or if kefir brings its own set of side effects? What would the recommended dosage be? Thanks!

[Misscshell24]

The article in media reports suggests 5oz three times a day. I started slowly and worked up to the amount, small sips throughout the day to see if you tolerate it sounds like a good idea to me. There's also a media report that Florastor helps reduce relapse, it is a yeast probiotic, that I found on Amazon.com. It caused me pain, so I was not able to tolerate it. Others do well with it, though, it is an individual thing.

[sevla]

Hi Zinnia1,
I think Kefir could contribute to the gas and bloated feeling. I feel both these symptoms since I have started it - but cannot definitely tell if it's from Kefir, the C Diff itself, or the other probiotics I am taking (Florastor and Culturelle). As for the Kefir dosage - I had heard 5oz 3x a day. However, it's better to start with less to see how your body reacts.

I was just googling porbiotics myself and found this very informative page:
http://www.eastbayfp.com/pdf/Comparison ... oducts.pdf

I hope you feel better soon. From all of what I read here, there are good days and bad days during recovery. Which really sucks for all of us. Sending positive thoughts your way.

[zinnia1]

Thank-you! I so appreciate how open you are w/your experiences. It really helps. I feel like should be doing all these things and then when I don't do very well it feels like something is wrong w/me or I am not getting it right. I will read this report!

[beth22]

Everyone is different. Florastor blows me up like a balloon with gas and even gives me a rash. I did not tolerate Align nor Culturelle, but many do. I can tolerate VSL#3, but I'm sure others can't. I had to try various probiotics before finding one that agreed with me. Give the kefir a try and do it slowly as you have been doing. If the symptoms get worse, then I would stop and try getting some type of probiotic to take.

[zinnia1]

Definitely not my weekend. I have hardly left the house just cause I keep going and going to the toilet. Not water, just endless soft…. endless.
One week off vanco….. this is the second day of my "three day" test. I have had white toast, chicken broth, bananas…going to be wild and crazy and have some yogurt to see what it does.
From what you great folks says this could be in the realms of normal..but how do we get it to STOP? So tempted to take an immodium, but know I shouldn't.
Tomorrow will be 10 days post vanco- should I re-test??

[Bobbie]

Q. How long to retest after Flagl/vanco/Dificid during active C. diff.?
A. 7 to l4 days and the longer the better. PCR is false positive for up to two weeks as bits of DNA from killed C. diff. are passed out, and if tested too soon gives a false positive result. Culture early is accurate but not easy to get done by labs.

[Lisa33]

Hi Zinnia1 - When I first started taking the VSL-3 and drinking Kefir, I had excessive bloating and gas. It was a little bit uncomfortable, but tolerable. It wasn't bad enough for me to stop, and I wanted to keep taking them to rebuild my good bacteria. After about a month or so, the bloating and gassiness subsided. I guess it took my body some time to adjust to the probiotics. That was my experience, and I know everybody is different. Probiotics just don't agree with some people at all, so it's not even an option. But if you are experiencing a little bit of gassiness and bloating with the Kefir, and it's tolerable, maybe start off slowly and see if your body adjusts to it.

-Lisa

[beth22]

I found I could not tolerate yogurt anymore either. Maybe stop the yogurt and see if it makes a difference.

[getwellsoon]

Have you asked the Dr. about Questran or Pepto? It might firm stools up some. Hope today is a better day.

[zinnia1]

Thank-you- another fast stool am- then disintegrating… Guess I am going to give florastor another shot. Now that I am off vanco maybe I will feel differently with it. Since some folks say stop the kefir and yogurt, others say try them… truly indicative that this is a tricky thing and our bodies are so temperamental!
My doc has said to wait on stool testing. No mention of Questran. I have been taking pepto on my own. She said ok to than ammonium if need to travel… :-(