r/Microbiome • u/interested-goose • 3d ago
Advice Wanted Why is this probiotic causing me severe brain fog & fatigue?
I literally cannot think, my brain feels like mush. I’ve been taking 2 a day for 4 days and I can’t think or stay awake…
17
u/ImXenia85 3d ago
L. Acidophilus = high histamine strain. You could have a histamine intolerance issue and it exacerbates it. Get a low histamine probiotic, google it. I'm pretty confident this is the issue here.
4
u/Meh2theMax 2d ago
L. acidophilus is not a strain, it is a species. No proof that this strain produces histamine.
PCR-based analysis of the L. acidophilus NCFM genome did not detect the hdc or tdc, the histidine and tyrosine decarboxylase genes, respectively (Morovic et al., 2017). These genes are responsible for producing histamine and tyramine, the most commonly produced biogenic amines by some strains of the genus Lactobacilus (Morovic et al., 2017).
4
1
u/interested-goose 3d ago
But I don’t have other histamine issues?
5
u/ImXenia85 3d ago
The only way to really find out is going on a low histamine probiotic and see if you get the same reaction. I'm fairly convinced this is the issue here.
2
4
4
u/Mysterious_Ad6308 2d ago edited 15h ago
if i were you, i would stop taking that and let things calm down. new probiotics disrupt your microbiome which is hopefully good in the long term but in the short term often results in gas, bloating, diarrhea or worse like you're having. i would make sure i'm eating well, avoid high carb processed food & sugar, eat high quality fermented food (kimchi, live sauerkraut, yogurt, don't bother with drinks as they have no benefit according to ISAPP) and then slowly introduce more diverse probiotics occasionally. Saccharomyces boulardii is a good kingpin probiotic to start with that helps with histamine if that's the issue. https://isappscience.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Dispelling-Probiotic-Myths.pdf There's a lot of industry hucksterism & doctors with an overly western mindset that more is better vs the reality that our microbiomes are a complex living barely understood mystery that needs gentle artful support not a barrage of abrupt high dose interventions. It's crazy making to figure out while you have desperate symptoms but sadly american PCPs & gastros are rarely the wisest advisors.
5
u/PositivePoet 3d ago
If your biome had an overgrowth of something else the sudden competition from your probiotics could have killed some of the other stuff and possibly be giving you die off symptoms?
2
2
u/bmaggot 3d ago
Why are you using it?
1
3
1
u/Logical_Ad_672 2d ago
Not related to this. That’s like throwing a thimble full of vinegar into a swimming pool and thinking it will change the ph of the water. Look at diet, sleep and stress first and maybe use a nice - single strain product like Culturelle or Digestive Advantage
0
u/Acceptable_Rip_5874 1d ago
That's utter BS number 1 and total gas lighting number 2. What was described by the OP is a common reaction to probiotics depending on their current health and biome terrain. 25bill is absolutely enough to cause a shift and reaction. Heck, there are some strains that shift things in the millions only. Jesus.
9
u/stebbeh 3d ago
Cos you need to build it up slowly and 25 billion is a pretty high dose. Best start off with a single strain of like 2 billion, take that for a few weeks, then start with this one and maybe half a capsule in water every other day first.