If you’ve ever taken prescription antibiotics, chances are you may experience some nasty digestive issues.
Many people recommend taking a probiotic when using antibiotics to eliminate those unpleasant side effects.
However, is taking probiotics while taking antibiotics a good thing? Can they cancel each other out?
In this article, we discuss when and why probiotics should be taken with antibiotics.
What Are Antibiotics?
Today, pharmaceutical companies specifically develop antibiotics to fight infections caused by bacteria. An antibiotic is effective because it stops harmful bacteria from multiplying in your body.
Antibiotics can be extremely helpful in resolving different bacteria induced illness, however, antibiotics kill all bacteria. That includes the beneficial and harmful bacteria.
Antibiotics can’t distinguish between the harmful bacteria causing an infection and the good bacteria living in your digestive tract. That being said, all bacteria is attacked and killed off.
All of us have different strains of beneficial bacteria living in our digestive tracts. The bacteria found here help us to break down food and nutrients.
This microflora also helps us maintain an active, healthy lifestyle by providing our bodies with energy and improving our immune system.
This attack causes an imbalance in the gastrointestinal system. Unfortunately, this means that many people suffer from diarrhea and other nasty stomach-related side effects when taking antibiotics.
Other uncomfortable side effects of antibiotics include a compromised immune system, yeast infections, and gastrointestinal pain.
What Are Probiotics?
Probiotics add to the beneficial bacteria naturally found in our digestive tract to further help them grow and flourish.
Some probiotics contain live colonies or yeast. Both ingredients are essential to maintaining healthy, well-balanced microflora.
When your digestive health is well-balanced and supported by these beneficial bacterial strains, you’ll find that your overall health is also improved.
You will feel more energetic, experience regular bowel movements, and strengthen the immune system.
Probiotic supplements are becoming more popular as more people realize the incredible benefits that they may provide.
Today, we find plenty of different probiotics, each capable of helping us to maintain a healthy, active, and balanced lifestyle.
If you do not get enough variety of probiotic-rich food sources in your diet, many people choose to take daily probiotic capsules to help improve their health and overall quality of life. It is typically safe to take a probiotic every day. However, you should always consult with your healthcare provider before starting a new supplement.
Should I Take Probiotics and Antibiotics At The Same Time?
People often ask whether it’s safe or even beneficial to simultaneously take a probiotic and an antibiotic.
Adding a probiotic to the course of your antibiotic treatment can reduce the risk of side effects, like diarrhea and disruption in gut flora. However, they should not be taken simultaneously.
Probiotics should be taken 2-3 hours after taking antibiotics to ensure your body doesn't attack the new probiotics you are introducing to your digestive tract.
A probiotic, such as Hyperbiotics’ PRO-15 Advanced Strength: Probiotic For Advanced Gut Health, can help reduce antibiotic side effects.
When used in conjunction with antibiotics, probiotics are known to:
- Make antibiotics more effective
- Reduce antibiotic side effects
- Reduce the risk of C. difficile infections associated with long-term antibiotic use
Not only do probiotics combat the adverse side effects, but they also provide you with several other health benefits.
You can expect to feel an increase in your energy while maintaining a healthy, regular digestive system. This increase in energy will also provide a better quality of life.
Research has proven that taking probiotics during the course of antibiotic treatment is safe and can have substantial benefits.
Common Side-effects When Taking Probiotics with Antibiotics
Are there any side effects when taking probiotics with antibiotics?
Today, most probiotics are safe for general consumption. However, there are rare cases of side effects occurring in people with severely compromised immune systems.
Most side effects are temporary. Some of the most common side effects of taking a probiotic are:
- Increase in gas
- Bloating
- Constipation
- Increase in thirst
We advise always consulting with a medical professional before taking any kind of supplement. You should also advise your healthcare provider if you’re experiencing any of these side effects.
Most often, probiotics are safe for the entire family to use.
Who Can Use Probiotics While Taking Antibiotics?
Anyone can take probiotics while on antibiotic treatment. Several studies have been found effective in preventing and treating diarrhea related to antibiotic use.
Keep in mind that the FDA doesn’t regulate probiotics. So, if you feel unsure about taking a probiotic, it’s always best to speak with a medical professional.
Taking a probiotic is a safe and possibly beneficial during antibiotic treatment. However, it would be best to use the right probiotic supplement to avoid any side effects.
Choosing The Right Probiotic when Taking Antibiotics
It’s essential to keep in mind that everybody is different. We all have different health requirements, restrictions, and immune systems.
Grabbing the first, most affordable probiotic on the shelf may not be the best idea.
We’ve created this handy guide to help you choose the best probiotic when using antibiotics. By doing this, you won’t have to do hours of research or end up buying a probiotic that won’t work.
Let’s look at how to choose the right probiotic supplement, how to take it, and what side effects, if any, you can expect while taking a probiotic supplement to combat the side effects of antibiotics.
Choose a Multi-strain Probiotic
If you’ve been wondering what to look for in a probiotic supplement, we’ve got good news for you.
When shopping around for a probiotic, we recommend buying a multi-strain probiotic.
A multi-strain probiotic, such as PRO-15, contains 15 different strains of microflora. These 15 strains all work together to help improve and balance your gastrointestinal system.
Taking a multi-strain probiotic is also a great way to ensure that your body gets the suitable probiotic strains it needs to flourish.
If you do not know the specific strain you require and purchase a single-strain probiotic, you may not see much benefit from it. They may not provide your body with the correct microflora strains that it needs.
Not only do you need to choose the right multi-strain probiotic, but you also need to take it at the right time to ensure that it’s effective.
Probiotic Timing
When is the best time to take a probiotic? The best time to take a probiotic is on an empty stomach.
Typically, people take probiotics at night, before going to bed, or early in the morning, before breakfast.
By taking a probiotic on an empty stomach, you’ll ensure that the beneficial microflora gets delivered to your digestive tract, where it can start to work.
If you are taking probiotics with food, the chances that the beneficial microflora will reach the digestive tract may be minimized.
Your stomach acids can digest the probiotic strains, killing off the beneficial bacteria your gut needs to maintain a healthy balance.
That being said, always take probiotics at the right time and on an empty stomach.
Take Probiotics and Antibiotics Two Hours Apart
If you are using a probiotic with an antibiotic, it’s best to take them 2-3 hours apart from each other. When you do, you’ll help ensure that the antibiotics don’t end up killing off the probiotics.
It doesn’t matter in which order you take them. All that matters is that there’s a two-hour window between taking a probiotic and an antibiotic.
After two hours, the concentration of probiotics or antibiotics in your system are at their lowest. Typically your body would’ve already absorbed the majority of it.
The space between taking them will ensure that your body gets the maximum benefit of both. Another great idea is to choose a probiotic that has a delayed-release system.
Take a Probiotic with a Delayed-release System
We are particularly fond of Hyperbiotics Probiotic line. These probiotic supplements have a unique patented coating that protects the probiotic strains from your stomach acids.
This controlled-release system ensures that a significant percentage of beneficial bacteria can reach your gut and get released steadily over time.
Here, the probiotics can start to colonize and flourish. When they do, your digestive health will improve, and you can begin to enjoy the benefits as soon as possible.
It’s essential to take a probiotic that can help deliver as many strains of microflora to your digestive tract as possible.
Yet, how much is enough? How many probiotics do you need to take?
A Daily Dose Is Enough
While probiotics are safe enough for daily use, it’s crucial to determine how many CFUs your probiotic supplement contains.
Pharmaceutical companies typically measure the microflora in probiotics in colony-forming units or CFUs. This measurement is an indication of how concentrated the microflora strains are.
While more sounds better, 10-20 billion CFUs are more than enough for adults. Anything above 20 billion will not provide additional benefit to the body.
To get the most benefit from your probiotic supplement, you need to choose one that contains just enough CFUs for your body.
For instance, a single tablet of PRO-15 Advanced Strength contains 15 billion CFUs. This amount is within the recommended amount of probiotics you should take daily.
This probiotic supplement contains enough microflora to ensure that your digestive health can get back on track as soon as possible.
However, you can’t simply take one tablet and call it a day. You’ll need to continue taking probiotics for at least a month before your digestive system is healthy and balanced.
Continue to Take Your Probiotics
If you’ve been wondering how long a probiotic supplement takes to work, you’ll be happy to know that they work pretty fast.
You should start seeing some benefit after the first couple of weeks while taking a probiotics supplement.
However, we find that finishing the probiotic treatment is essential to give the microflora enough time to improve and balance your digestive health. After a month, follow your healthcare providers recommendation on probiotic dosage.
In today’s high-demand, fast-paced world, it’s a good idea for everyone to take a probiotic supplement regularly. An alternative would be to supplement your diet with probiotic-rich foods.
Eat Probiotic-Rich Foods
When taking probiotics, it’s also a great idea to eat probiotic-rich foods. This combination of a supplement and specific foods, can help eliminate the side effects of taking an antibiotic.
Probiotics and probiotic-rich foods can also help to strengthen your digestive system. Overall, you’ll feel healthier and happier when your digestive system is in good condition.
These foods often also provide the existing microflora in your digestive system with enough nutrients to flourish and maintain a healthy balance.
To maintain a healthy balance of microflora, we recommend trying to add any of the following foods into your diet:
- Kefir
- Sauerkraut
- Pickles
- Kombucha
- Yogurts with live active cultures
These foods are known as superfoods that can help improve your digestive health. It’s a good idea to include them in your regular diet. Your body and gut will thank you for it.
The Best Probiotic When Taking Antibiotics
Now that you’ve learned about the benefits of taking a multi-strain probiotic supplement when taking antibiotics, it’s time to look at one of the most recommended probiotics to use.
PRO-15 Advanced Strength: Probiotic For Advanced Gut Health
Our top probiotic supplement to take when on antibiotics is a product from Hyperbiotics. PRO-15 Advanced Strength: Probiotic For Advanced Gut Health is an excellent probiotic supplement.
Let’s see why it comes so highly recommended, especially if you’re using antibiotics.
Multi-strain
This specific probiotic comes with 15 different strains of microflora to help effectively restore balance to your digestive system.
Some of the more common strains found in this probiotic supplement include Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium, and Streptococcus.
These strains are human-resident strains, meaning you won’t find any yeast or ground-produced strains in this probiotic supplement.
Human-resident strains are microflora strains that naturally occur in humans. It’s essential to avoid any artificial strains which could end up upsetting your digestive system.
Artificial probiotic strains, and sometimes even yeast, can lead to an imbalanced digestive system.
You’ll soon start experiencing some nasty side effects, such as bloating or gassiness, when taking the wrong probiotic.
Delayed-release System
PRO-15 comes with a patented delayed-release system.
This clever release system not only protects the probiotic strains as they travel through your stomach acids, but also ensures a steady release of probiotics throughout the day.
This system will steadily release essential probiotics into your system through an 8 to 10 hour period. This gives the microflora enough time to establish colonies within your digestive tract.
Once they establish these colonies, they can start to grow and flourish. Doing this will quickly restore your digestive system’s natural balance.
No Artificial Ingredients
PRO-15 is vegetarian and free of dairy, gluten, and yeast. This supplement has no soy, sugar, nuts, artificial flavors, artificial colors, or preservatives.
The healthy ingredients in this supplement make it a great probiotic supplement that many people with different dietary needs and restrictions can take.
It also won’t flood your system with harmful chemicals or sugars that can cause various undesirable side effects.
It Actually Works
One of the best methods to find out how well a probiotic supplement works is to look at reviews of the product.
Hundreds of positive online reviews back PRO-15 Advanced Strength: Probiotic For Advanced Gut Health.
These positive reviews are evidence that this probiotic supplement works for various people.
We know that probiotics can work different for everyone based on individual needs and different immune systems.
Affordable
Probiotics shouldn’t be expensive, and luckily PRO-15 Advanced Strength isn’t.
A single bottle containing 30 tablets is only around $28. This pricing means you spend less than $1 a day to keep your digestive health on track.
There’s also a subscription option that could help savvy shoppers save an additional 10% when purchasing this probiotic supplement.
Our Final Thoughts
We’ve seen that taking a probiotic while on antibiotic treatment is a great idea. Probiotics will repair the damage caused by antibiotics.
They’ll help you avoid nasty side effects, such as diarrhea, and can help to bring back essential balance to your digestive system.
Choosing the perfect probiotic to take while using antibiotics is also pretty straightforward. It would be best if you chose a probiotic that:
- Is a multi-strain probiotic
- Contains human-resident microflora strains
- Has 15-20 billion CFU’s
- Comes with a delayed-release mechanism
- Has been extensively reviewed and shown to work
- Is affordable
That’s why PRO-15 from Hyperbiotics is a fantastic probiotic to take when taking antibiotics.
This probiotic supplement will ensure that your digestive health is looked after while completing your antibiotic treatment.
Probiotics With Antibiotics FAQs
Is it safe to take antibiotics and probiotics together?
It is always recommended to consult with your healthcare provider whether or not a probiotic is suitable for you.
If you are cleared, you are likely to see great benefit from taking a probiotic with antibiotics. For best results, you should try to take them at least two hours apart from each other.
Do antibiotics cause diarrhea?
A common side effect of taking antibiotics is diarrhea. Doctors often prescribe a probiotic to counter these side effects when taking antibiotics.
What foods contain probiotics?
Various foods can help to introduce beneficial microflora to your digestive system naturally.
Foods such as kefir, yogurt, sauerkraut, pickles, kombucha, and miso soup are great ways to add probiotics to your diet naturally.
What are the benefits of taking probiotics?
Probiotics are great for combatting the side effects experienced when taking antibiotics. They also help to maintain a healthy, regular digestive system.
When your digestive system is strong and healthy, you can experience more energy and a happier, active lifestyle.
Will antibiotics cancel out probiotics?
As long as you take them at least two hours apart from one another, they won’t cancel each other out.
Take a probiotic that has a delayed-release mechanism. It’ll also help avoid the probiotics from being canceled out by the antibiotics.
Did you find our blog helpful? Then consider checking:
- What to Expect When You Start Taking Probiotics
- The Difference Between Prebiotics and Probiotics
- Can You Take Too Many Probiotics
- Benefits of Probiotics for Women
- Probiotics and Weight Management: What's the Connection?
- Understanding Probiotics and the Human Microbiome
- Why All Probiotics Aren't Created Equal
- 5 Reasons Your Probiotics Aren't Working and What to Do About It
- Best Probiotics For Weight Loss
**This blog is for information and education purposes only. This information is not intended to substitute professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Please consult with your physician or another qualified health provider with any questions in regards to a medical condition. A qualified healthcare professional can best assist you in deciding whether a dietary supplement is suitable based on your individual needs.