My story

I bought Cultural a few years ago on the recommendation of a friend, who was giving this to her autistic son to treat his leaky gut syndrome. Costing about SGD40 for a 30-day supply, this product didn’t come cheap. But I decided to give it a try anyway, hoping it would ease the digestive issues I was experiencing at the time. To make a long story short, I found relief from my indigestion three days after taking Cultural, but I didn’t understand or appreciate why or what makes it so effective at that time.

I recently became very interested in the subject of probiotics and started researching Culturelle for a while. My relentless search in the information jungle that is the internet finally revealed some fascinating facts about this product.

What cultural places apart from other probiotic supplements?

Culturelle is a probiotic supplement that contains Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (ATCC strain 53103), a bacterium naturally found in the human digestive tract. This bacterial strain was discovered in 1985 by two Boston scientists, Professors Sherwood Gorbach and Barry Goldin, who were looking for a strain that could meet the following strict criteria:

1) The bacteria must be of human origin; 2) It must be able to adhere to the human intestinal lining 3) It must be able to colonize the intestine to avoid competition from invading pathogens; 4) It can resist stomach and bile acid to survive the journey from the stomach to the intestines; and 5) The strain must have health-promoting benefits in the human body. 6) It must be safe for human consumption. LGG meets all of these criteria and is the best studied and most documented probiotic lactic acid bacteria strain in the world. Currently, Lactobacillus GG has the most extensive safety evaluation record of any probiotic strain. Few other strains of the Lactobacillus rhamnosus species have received this type of scientific attention.

Pretty amazing I would say. But he was still not satisfied. Not until you see some real scientific data behind these claims. Below is what I found out…

LGG proves effective for acute and traveler’s diarrhea

o LGG is an effective form of treatment for diarrhea caused by Clostridium difficile bacteria. (a) This type of bacteria is also responsible for more serious intestinal disorders such as colitis. In a 1996 study of 32 patients in Boston and Baltimore, the success rate of LGG treatment is a significant 94%.

o LGG also significantly reduced the duration of diarrhea in another study, particularly in diarrhea caused by rotavirus. (b) Professor Gary Huffnagle, renowned author of “The Probiotics Revolution” also cited a study conducted at European medical centers in 287 children (ages 1 month to 3 years) that “the duration of diarrhea was reduced by an impressive 13 hours …” (see page 128 of “The Probiotic Revolution”)

o The incidence of traveler’s diarrhea is lower in people who consume Lactobacillus GG.(c)

 LGG moderates sensitivity to milk

o LGG prevents inflammation in people sensitive to cow’s milk.

o In a double-blind, crossover study, LGG was found to abolish the inflammatory response in milk-sensitive subjects to a significant degree. In non-responsive subjects, LGG stimulated their immune systems. (d) LGG decreases the incidence of atopic eczema

o Lactobacillus GG has been clinically shown to prevent the development of atopic eczema in children.

o In a 6-month trial of 159 infants at risk of developing atopic eczema, infants given LGG were found to be only half as likely to develop the skin disorder compared to the placebo group during the first 2 years of life. (e) o The protective effect of LGG continued for at least 4 years.(f)

Other proven therapeutic effects of Lactobacillus GG

o Reduce the side effects of H. pylori antibiotics. LGG significantly reduced side effects such as bloating, diarrhea, and metallic taste in the mouth during triple therapy, the standard treatment for H. pyloric infections.(g)

o Antitumor effects: Lactobacillus GG was shown to slow the development of colon tumors in rats fed a high-fat diet.(h)

o Prevents relapse in patients with ulcerative colitis.(i)

What else do I like about this product? A query on the Culturelle website shows that they guarantee 10 billion colony-forming units (CFUs) of Lactobacillus GG at the time of use, the amount scientifically researched and proven for a beneficial clinical response. Most manufacturers only list the number of viable bacterial cells at the time of manufacture.

Another point worth mentioning here is that each Culturelle capsule “is individually double-foiled and nitrogen flushed to ensure maximum potency and stability, as well as to act as an effective barrier against light, moisture, heat and the air.” It is very convenient for traveling as well as for people who have limited space in their refrigerator.

Culturelle has been proven to be safe for babies, children and pregnant women. It has no known adverse drug interactions.

What to keep in mind…

People sensitive to milk should be careful

Although the scientific data I presented above states that LGG is safe for those sensitive to milk, I personally believe that there may still be potential allergies, as Culturelle contains trace amounts of casein and whey, which are milk proteins. A search of a few review sites shows that a very small minority of users experience digestive upset and colon irritation when taking Culturelle. Well, I guess nothing works perfectly well for everyone, since every human being has a unique makeup in their biochemistry.

You might consider other brands like UAS Lab’s Probioplus and Natren’s Healthy Trinity, which are good non-dairy options.

No one type of bacterial strain works for everything

Due to the enormous amount of attention that the scientific community pays to the LGG strain, it is easy to overlook the potential benefits that other strains of bacteria can have on the human body. In the words of Professor Gary B. Huffnagle, a highly respected immunologist and microbiologist, “all members of a bacterial species share many microbiological and biochemical traits, and others may be as beneficial as, or even superior to, the GG strain.” ..Until you have all the information, variety is your best bet.”

my verdict

Overall, Culturelle is a good all-rounder at an affordable price, which is why I would give it a 4 1/2 out of 5 star rating. Despite its faults, i would still buy this from time to time to create a diverse colony of probiotics in my gut. It will most likely be my first choice if I ever need to fight a GI infection.