The material provided below is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to replace the diagnosis or treatment by a qualified healthcare professional. You should always seek medical advice before consuming any new medicines or supplements.
You have taken the first step toward maintaining your immune and digestive health by adding a probiotic to your daily regimen, and that's great*! As you compare different probiotics, you’ll notice that Culturelle® contains only one probiotic strain, Lactobacillus GG, while many of the other brands contain a number of different strains. You may wonder, “Which option will work the best to help keep me healthy?” Or, “are multiple probiotic strains more effective than a single strain?” You may be surprised to learn that the single-strain formula used in Culturelle probiotics reigns supreme. Here’s why:
Results Are Proven
To choose the probiotic that will be most effective for your needs, find one that has the science and research backing it. If you choose a multi-strain product, it’s important for every individual strain in the probiotic to have ample controlled, well-designed studies—performed on humans—in the same amount per serving declared on the packaging label - that prove its effectiveness.
While there are hundreds of probiotic strains out there, Lactobacillus GG is the #1 most clinically studied probiotic strain, hands down – with over 800 scientific studies and 200 clinical studies††. That’s why Culturelle probiotics contain 100% of the Lactobacillus GG strain, the proven probiotic††, and is the only brand to do so.
Potency is Guaranteed
When you look at a Culturelle® probiotic package, you can rest assured that when you see the number of colony forming units (CFU) on the label, you are getting that amount of live active cultures of the naturally-sourced Lactobacillus GG probiotic strain. That’s because Culturelle products are specially formulated to the efficacious amounts of Lactobacillus GG specified in the clinical studies, and unlike other probiotics guarantees that amount through the expiration date on the box**
On the contrary, when you look at the label of a multi-strain probiotic, you are sometimes shown a total number of CFUs with a list of probiotics shown as their “proprietary blend.” Within this “propriety blend” you don’t know the amount of each individual strain, or if you are getting enough of the probiotic to actually work based on the science for your desired benefits. Furthermore, some of these products only guarantee the live CFU count at the time of manufacture (i.e., before you actually get to use it).
Interactions Are Obsolete
When you add multiple strains to the mix, you have to study both their individual effects and their interactions with each other. Will the different probiotics have to battle with each other for space in the intestines? Do certain strains stop other ones from working? When it comes to studies on probiotic formulas with more than three strains, the research today just doesn’t exist to show that they can be effective†.
Culturelle is number one for a reason. It is the only dietary supplement with 100% Lactobacillus GG, the probiotic that is scientifically demonstrated to support your digestive and immune health*.
Bottom Line
So when choosing between a single-strain and multi-strain probiotic, remember to:
- Look for a probiotic with either a proven strain or strains, and that each individual strain has been tested and researched
- Ensure the amount of each individual strain on the package is specified at the same levels in the science and guaranteed through the expiration date.
- If a multi-strain probiotic, that there is scientific evidence not only for the individual strains but for the sum of the parts
†Source: VSL #3 only 8 organism combination studied
