Conflicting opinions in articles available on the internet about the best time to take probiotic supplements can easily lead to confusion. One school of thought claims that probiotics should be taken first thing in the morning on an empty stomach. Another school of thought claims that the absolute best time to take your probiotics is alongside (directly before or after) your meals, as taking it early in the morning on an empty stomach subjects the probiotics to powerful stomach acid that may kill off the bacteria.
All probiotics are not created equal and it seems as if a general rule of thumb cannot be applied, as it may depend on the particular strain(s) of probiotics and the enteric coating of the probiotic capsule.
To shed some light on the matter, the manufacturers of Intestiflora – the probiotic of human origin recommended by Health Insight – has provided research results that prove that the probiotic strains used in the manufacture of Intestiflora have the following key attributes, summarized below:
- Well suited for intestinal survival.
- High tolerance for gastrointestinal conditions (acid, bile, pepsin and pancreatin.)
- Strong adhesion to intestinal cell lines.
- Ability to inhibit common pathogens.
- Beneficial modulation of immune functions.
- Long history of safe and effective use.
When to take your Intestiflora for best effect:
- First thing in the morning on an empty stomach, at least an hour before breakfast.
- Not with food – rather 2 hours or longer after a meal
- Last thing at night, at least 2 hours after dinner. It would be best to swallow one capsule with water, and open another capsule in your mouth directly with no water, to allow attachment of bacteria to mouth and higher parts of the gastro-intestinal system (GIT).