The Happy Talent
  • Blog
  • About
  • Popular
  • Education
  • Social Science
  • Travel
  • Products
  • Contact
"It is a happy talent to know how to play."

Are Probiotics the Key To Avoiding Traveler's Diarrhea?

1/12/2017

1 Comment

 
Picture
Guys, I'm, like, soooo vaccinated right now!

​In just a few days, I'm headed to Thailand. Then Sri Lanka. Then Vietnam. Then... who knows? And, at the last minute, I decided to do the responsible thing and get my vaccines.

No, they didn't give me adult-onset autism. Just a slightly sore arm.

And knowledge! 

Okay, the vaccines didn't give me knowledge. But the doctor did. 

She said that probiotics can help prevent (and treat) traveler's diarrhea. They contain helpful, healthy microbes that compete with stomach-upsetting bacteria and other organisms that you might accidentally ingest. 

Who said competition isn't a good thing? (I mean, other than educators who don't fully understand motivation and developmental psychology?)

But, she said, not all probiotics are created equal. The most effective bacteria are Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium bifidum. The yeast you want is Saccharomyces boulardii. 

However, it isn't just the contents of the pills, but also how they are delivered, that matters. In order to work, they need to make it through the stomach to the intestine without being dissolved. 

The brand my doctor recommended is Ortho Molecular Ortho Biotic, which is $33 for 30 capsules ot $60 for 60. 
Picture

​That's a little pricey. I did some research online and found a cheaper equivalent: NexaBiotic Advanced Multi-Biotic, which contains Lactobacillus acidophilus, 
Bifidobacterium bifidum and Saccharomyces boulardii, and claims to have stomach-acid resistant delayed-release capsules. And! It's half the price: 30 for $14.82 or 60 for $26.57.

Plus, the little intestine guy on the bottle is SO cute!
Picture
So that's what I ended up ordering, even though it might not be as effective as the doctor-recommended brand. I wasn't especially worried about contracting the infamous Bangkok Belly, as I've never really had traveler's diarrhea before... but I figured it's always better not to be exploding out of both ends.

Now, as anyone who's read my blog before knows, I HATE pseudoscience. So before I ordered, I did some research with my boyfriend, who has a Ph.D. in genetics. We're both passionate about scientific literacy, so I wanted to share some of the articles we read about these probiotics. 

The first, and most compelling, is McFarland's 
Meta-analysis of probiotics for the prevention of traveler's diarrhea (2007). This study is reputable because:

a) The research came out of the Department of Health Services Research and Development, VA Puget Sound Health Care System -- not some random institution, not some company that has a conflict of interests. 

b) Meta-analyses are studies of studies. Rather than doing one study and publishing the results, they examine the results of many or all available studies on a specific topic, evaluate the quality of the studies, and look for consensus and reproducibility. It's a valuable to weed out bad or biased "pseudo" studies. In other words, it's a rigorous methodology that helps filter out bad research.


McFarland found that "twelve of 940 screened studies met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The pooled relative risk indicates that probiotics significantly prevent TD (RR=0.85, 95% CI 0.79,0.91, p<0.001)... Several probiotics (Saccharomyces boulardii and a mixture of Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium bifidum) had significant efficacy. No serious adverse reactions were reported in the 12 trials. Probiotics may offer a safe and effective method to prevent TD."

Interesting to note: most people think of "probiotics," but 
Saccharomyces boulardii, the yeast my doctor recommended, is actually the most studied, most effective ingredients. 

Other interesting studies: 

Randomized controlled trial of live lactobacillus acidophilus plus bifidobacterium bifidum in prophylaxis of diarrhea during radiotherapy in cervical cancer patients (Chitapanarux et al., 2010)  found that "Grade 2 -3 diarrhea was observed in 45% of the placebo group (n = 31) and 9% of the study drug group (n = 32) (p = 0.002). Anti-diarrheal medication use was significantly reduced in the placebo group (p = 0.03). The patients in the study drug group had a significantly improved stool consistency (p < 0.001)." 

Efficacy and Safety of Saccharomyces boulardii in Acute Rotavirus Diarrhea: Double Blind Randomized Controlled Trial from a Developing Country (Das et al., 2016) found that "the median duration (hours) of diarrhea was significantly shorter in the intervention group (60 vs. 89; 95% CI: -41.2 to - 16.8). A significantly shorter duration of hospitalization (74 vs. 91; 95% CI: -33.46 to - 0.54) was also seen in the intervention group, but no significant difference was seen for fever and vomiting... The present trial showed that SB is effective and safe in acute rotavirus diarrhea."

Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium bifidum stored at ambient temperature are effective in the treatment of acute diarrhoea (Rerksuppaphol and Rerksuppaphol, 2010) found that "probiotics shortened duration of diarrhoea (34.1 and 34.8 hrs when stored either at 4°C or at room temperature, respectively, and 58 hrs with placebo, p<0.01) and reduced the number of stools (7.3 and 8 vs 15.9 with placebo, p<0.01)... Administration of probiotics is beneficial as additional treatment of acute diarrhoea and efficacy is not affected by storage temperature."

TL;DR: There is strong evidence that these three probiotics can help prevent and treat traveler's (and other) diarrhea -- if they're formulated properly. There's no point taking a probiotic if it gets dissolved and destroyed in the stomach. My doctor recommended 
Ortho Molecular Ortho Biotic, which meets all the scientific criteria, and a less expensive option is NexaBiotic Advanced Multi-Biotic. 

Now go eat some delicious street food. (Assuming you can see them making it; there are locals in line; and you're getting it around the time when locals eat -- that way you know it hasn't been sitting out all day.)
Picture
1 Comment
Kane link
1/19/2018 11:49:04 pm

Thanks for the helpful article. The interpretation and scientific studies on the effects of Probiotics against diarrhea have helped me understand their effects. I plan to buy NexaBiotic Advanced Multi-Biotic for upcoming trips

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    About the Author
    Picture
    Eva is a content specialist with a passion for play, travel... and a little bit of girl power.  Read more >


    Want to support The Happy Talent? CLICK HERE!
    Support the Happy Talent
    Or Find me on Patreon!
    Picture

    What's Popular on The Happy Talent:
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

      Want more?

    Submit

    Trending in Dating and Relationships:
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture



    ​What's Popular in Science:
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture


    Playfulness and Leisure Skills:
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Popular in Psychology and Social Skills:
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture

    Categories

    All
    20s
    Adolescence
    Backpacking
    Boredom
    Boredom Avoidance
    Camping
    Career Advice
    Careers
    Communication
    Confidence
    Consent
    Creativity
    Curiosity
    Dating
    Economy
    Education
    Entrepreneurship
    Fearlessness
    Female Travel
    Feminism
    Free Speech
    Gap Year
    Great Products
    Growth Mindset
    Health
    Hiking
    Hitchhiking
    Life Advice
    Meeting New People
    Mental Health
    Mexico
    Mindfulness
    Most Popular
    National Parks
    Outdoors
    Parenting
    Parenting Advice
    Passive Entertainment
    Play
    Playfulness
    Psychology
    Relationships
    Resilience
    Science
    Scuba Diving
    Self Help
    Self-help
    Sex
    Sports
    Stanford University
    Startups
    Study Abroad
    Summer
    Technology
    Teenagers
    Therapy
    Travel
    Yosemite

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly
Photos from paweesit, Steven Penton, torbakhopper, Theo Crazzolara, edenpictures, Kiwi Tom, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Homedust, wocintechchat.com, Ralphman, wbaiv, kg.abhi, Jamiecat *, UnitedWarVeterans, D()MENICK, True Portraits, Neville Wootton Photography, Salvation Army USA West, South African Tourism, phalinn, WilliamsProjects, j_bary, Japanexperterna.se, thephotographymuse, Elvert Barnes, ThoroughlyReviewed, hairy:jacques, joncutrer, wuestenigel, Franck_Michel, jimwerner25, Imahinasyon Photography, joanne clifford, m01229, Antonio Campoy Ederra, Our Dream Photography (Personal), shixart1985, davidstewartgets, couples in nature, Dage - Looking For Europe, jonseidman, andymw91, garryknight, wuestenigel, Rosmarie Voegtli, werner.philipps, Gage Skidmore, Novafly, dinuxm1, Eddie Yip, Prayitno / Thank you for (10 millions +) views, DMahendra, James_Seattle, jamkablam, vanitystudiosphotography, verchmarco (CC BY 2.0), Luiz Gustavo Leme, oki_jappo, Daquella manera, CasparGirl, Mary Anne Morgan, inkknife_2000 (10.5 million + views), homethods, wocintechchat, Hypnotica Studios Infinite, dailyrectangle, Tobyotter, torbakhopper, Kevin Johnston, David Robb, eisenberg_emily, True Portraits, Douglas Pimentel, pmarkham, Noize Photography, rawdonfox, dollen, davidstewartgets, ed and eddie, Ryosuke Yagi, Anthony_Greene, Ruth and Dave, best couples, Jenn Durfey, Cost3l, Orin Zebest, anjanettew, dollen, Editor B, Alexander Day, LyndaSanchez, polosopuestosblog, UpSticksNGo, Agência Brasil, homethods, Find Rehab Centers, Novafly, Deornelas4, buzzern, seefit, C. VanHook (vanhookc), University of Delaware Alumni Relations, Franck_Michel, gordontarpley, Chris Photography(王權), usadifranci, virgohobbs, TheUglySweaterShop, popofatticus, wuestenigel (CC BY 2.0), Mitya Ku, Stefano Montagner - The life around me, Official U.S. Navy Imagery, xxxology, Valentina (GaiaPhotography), True Portraits, Lars Plougmann, Scioto Photos, Carlos ZGZ, quinn.anya, anokarina, amtecstaffing, mliu92, sfbaywalk, MakaiylaW, jerseytom55, Ray in Manila, BoldContent, stevenbates, Janitors, True Portraits, dwhartwig, Kuruman, sffoghorn, liveoncelivewild, mripp, Magdalena Roeseler, Tambako the Jaguar, Barbro Andersen, cbcmemberphotos2477, dejankrsmanovic, weeklydig, Free For Commercial Use (FFC), Sharon C Johnson, Phuketian.S, WeTravel.com, Gunn Shots (On and off these days), valentin hintikka, homethods, JasonParis, kennethkonica, Gregg Vandenberghe, Alyssa L. Miller, theblacknemesis, jdlasica, verchmarco, lizbennington, Artem Beliaikin, best couples, Tony Webster, Infomastern, www.audio-luci-store.it, Our Dream Photography (Personal), LandBetweentheLakesKYTN, KRWonders, donnierayjones, tristendomusic, [email protected], ::ErWin, cnu_sports, gagilas, euthman, ierdnall, jeffreyw, liveoncelivewild, melan.cholerikerin, Artur Malinowski, blachswan, szwerink, wuestenigel, Foodista, toptenalternatives, Cubmundo, Kirt Edblom, Glenn Loos-Austin, wuestenigel, eleonoralbasi, wuestenigel, LyndaSanchez, gagilas, torbakhopper, Gage Skidmore, irio.jyske, LyndaSanchez, Theo Crazzolara, garryknight, kennethkonica, rentalrealities
  • Blog
  • About
  • Popular
  • Education
  • Social Science
  • Travel
  • Products
  • Contact