What Probiotic do you recommend for myself & my baby that is economical?

Q: I'm looking for a great probiotic for myself and my baby but I want to save money. What do you recommend?

A. If your baby is under 2, the HLC Neonate by Pharmax is excellent. If she's older, the HLC High Potency Powder is wonderful for adults and kids. It contains FOS which feeds the beneficial bacteria. FOS can be problematic for those who have severe gut disbiosis and virtually no good bacteria in their gut as it can feed the yeast and cause gas. HLC Intensive capsules contain no FOS and some people prefer them.

If you guys need a great quality maintenance product and are looking to save money, I use the HLC High Potency Powder. Just a 1/3 tsp a day is plenty, it tastes great, and comes out to $13.63 p/month if you get the 120g size. If you or your baby have gluten or casein intolerance, HLC Mindlinx is the only product found to directly target these proteins and help digest them before they leak out of your gut and cause allergic symptoms.

When it comes to probiotics, you tend to get what you pay for, so I would not recommend saving money by getting a cheaper brand that claims to have equal or more strains. These live organisms are so special that if you invest in a brand that has the best strains (i.e. human strains proven to adhere to the GI), you won't need to use as much to get a great effect. Also, there are a number of strains which are neither beneficial nor harmful—just neutral. No need to buy a product that contains those. In other words, just because a product lists 10 strains doesn't mean it's better than one which lists 4. Lastly, you pay more for capsules vs powder (dollar for gram), so always choose powder form when you are looking to save money.

Over the last 8 years, I've attended many seminars given by microbiologists on probiotics, and I've learned that the strains and the technology used by the manufacturer has everything to do with the efficacy of the probiotic. I am very impressed with the years of research and development done by Pharmax LLC who makes the HLC probiotics, and have decided to used these for myself, my family, and my clients—all with excellent results. They are the only company who have done such extensive clinical trials on their products. Here are some summaries of their research: Clinical Research Trials on HLC Probiotics

Pharmax is a European company who has discovered that the human strains implant in the GI significantly better than animal or dairy based strains because the body recognizes it as "self". They also limited the types of strains in each product to be only the ones proven to be 100% beneficial all the time in humans rather than including a bunch of strains which can have neutral effects. Lastly, they include 30% more probiotics in each bottle than what is stated on the label so that even after 6 months at room temperature, you are sure to get the minimum amount listed on the label. Other companies list the maximum possible amount at time of manufacturing. In result, the strains in their Pharmax HLC probiotics are all beneficial ones, they are contained in larger amounts than listed, and adhere much better than dairy based or animal based strains. There are a number of testimonials on these great probiotics from people who have tried all different kinds out there and come to realize that these work the best: HLC Probiotics and testimonials.