There are certain scenarios where customers may particularly wish to take more than one live cultures supplement at once:
Saccharomyces Boulardii is a friendly yeast, with a different mode of action to other microorganisms (most of our products are friendly bacteria), and can therefore be safe and appropriate to take alongside any other supplement in the Optibac range.
Many of our customers take both Every Day EXTRA and Saccharomyces Boulardii on a regular basis.
Many people have difficulty choosing between Every Day (for general friendly bacteria support) and Immune Support.
If you are having trouble deciding between the two, try 'mixing and matching' by taking one capsule of each product every day. This way, your body receives vitamin C from Immune Support, with additional live cultures & FOS fibres from Every Day.
Certain live cultures supplements are designed and shown to target specific areas of the body, for example Optibac For Women has been proven to survive to reach the vaginal flora. In this case customers may wish to take For Women as well as one of the other Optibac supplements which are designed to reach the gut.
Many of our female customers take For Women every day as well as one of our general daily supplements such as Every Day.
Taking other brands
If you are taking a different brand of live cultures and wish to take one of ours alongside it, there is very little risk. Live cultures are natural supplements, and our range provides from 2.5 billion to 100 billion microorganisms per daily dose - whereas the human body is home to an incredible 100 trillion microorganisms. Whilst we cannot speak for other brands, and it would always be best to check with the manufacturer in question, at the end of the day, there is generally no harm in taking more than one live cultures supplement at the same time. Similarly you can regularly consume fermented foods and drinks, as well as taking a live culture supplement.
On the other hand, if you're taking two different supplements in order to get 'enough' live cultures, do rest assured that we always stress that it is more important to find the right types of live cultures for you, with a high quality supplement, than it is to worry too much about trying to get a certain number of billions. Bacteria, after all, multiply once they reach the gut and adhere to the gut wall lining.
To find out more about whether it's possible to overdose on probiotics, visit the Probiotics Learning Lab.
This FAQ has been answered by Kerry Beeson, BSc (Nut.Med) Nutritional Therapist.