i've read a lot in the news about probiotics for weight loss. anyone tried them? if so, which ones? (i've heard of align, culturelle, vsl3, and others) im also thinking about microbiome testing from places like map my gut or ubiome and also personalized probiotics like blaise

I've used probiotics. The kind you keep in the fridge.
I noticed my family really likes pickled foods. The pickled vegetables disappear like crazy. I thought I would pickle some at home. While searching for recipes I came across fermented foods. It is super easy and cheap. I made some salsa, weighted it down with a drinking glass and 2-4 days later it is done. It will keep in my fridge for months. It has a slightly different taste so I put a little on a chip or mix it with an avocado.
WARNING if you try this start out slow. Slow like a teaspoon a day. It will clean all the nasty bacteria out of your gut. If you were full of toxins like I was you may get cramping and have to run to the bathroom the first time. It is much more potent then any pills.
I have noticed since starting this my weight has been dropping fast. Even faster then intermittent fasting alone.
I will update this thread and let you know if that continues.
I also am giving this to two guinea pig friends to try for weight loss without changing their diet. Some reports say if you eat it with a meal your blood sugar drops 30-50%. That would explain a lot since I am insulin resistant.
One last thing, the fermented foods you buy in stores in the US are not all that potent because of our packaging laws.
I would love to hear others experiences.

The supplement industry is heavily unregulated. Companies don't have to receive FDA approval to bring a product to the market and the human body is just not meant to digest pills and capsules they way they make you out to believe. They're also too expensive.

The purpose of probiotics is to bring good bacteria to your gut. The best way to do this is to eat a wide variety of whole foods. Then you can add probiotic-rich (real) food on top of this. My favorite natural probiotics are

1. Kombucha
2. Kefir (unflavored to avoid the added sugar)
3. Sauerkraut
4. Kimchi
5. Miso

All you can get at the grocery store. Just ask

I take Ayush 50B probiotic with every meal, which is the one my doctor told me to take. She said that in med school they tested different probiotics to see if they grew what they were supposed to grow. Many of them are essentially inert- meaning, they have no live bacteria in them. One, she told me, even grew a bad bacteria. So definitely take a high quality brand, whatever you do.

It is thought that certain probiotics may inhibit the absorption of dietary fat, increasing the amount of fat excreted with feces

In other words, they make you “harvest” fewer calories from the foods in your diet.

Certain bacteria, such as those from the Lactobacillus family, have been found to function in this way.

Probiotics may also fight obesity in other ways:

Release of GLP-1: Probiotics may help release the satiety (appetite-reducing) hormone GLP-1. Increased levels of this hormone may help you burn calories and fat.
Increase of ANGPTL4: Probiotics may increase levels of the protein ANGPTL4. This may lead to decreased fat storage.

There is also a lot of evidence that obesity is linked to inflammation in the brain. By improving gut health, probiotics may reduce systemic inflammation and protect against obesity and other diseases.

However, it is important to keep in mind that these mechanisms aren’t understood very well. More research is needed.

I got two books about this from Amazon and started taking a probiotic and drinking a little ACV vinegar water most days. I like things so far.

I've had Crohn's and Thyroid trouble for over thirty years. Both leave me with fatigue that is awful.
Most diets say Fiber, Fiber, Fiber! But then Crohn's says blockage, blockage hospital.

I've started on the Microbiome process to see if I can do that. So far the joint pain has seriously been reduced to when I can move a bit without pain.

I'd like to share Microbiome tips & results with others in the journey.

A friend who is a microbiologist shared an article from Nature which is a well respected journal. I will be following this thread. So far I understand there are strains that may be more effective than others. We make our own kefir from grains but it is easy to have it get out of control. Kathy I would love to see your tips. I think it is far more important than we know.

I don't have enough posts to share a link but if you google nature and microbiome you will hit a mother-lode...............but unfortunately not that article..........I will try to come back and add when I have enough posts

Off and on commenter here, sorry to bump old thread but just wanted to add my two cents to this topic, share this for what it's worth, I started taking a pill form potent probiotic along with potassium supplement as well, I've noticed for a while my body really seems to hold onto water weight more than normal, anyway just wanted to point out that without changing anything else I've noticeably slimmed down a bit since I started taking these about 2 weeks ago. I regularly eat bananas and probiotic yogurt and those haven't had any noticeable effect, not that I was expecting them to, so I believe it's the more concentrated pill forms that are having this positive outcome / effect.
Might be effective / help others...who knows.

** UPDATE: FYI.... Still seeing great results in mirror with this supplement combo... makes me think my digestive system etc was tweaked all these years of struggling and seeing minimal results in weight loss, ...for the most part. Once again, not changing anything else with my standard diet and exercise regimen. And to add, due to some mild brain fog and mild irritability taking probiotics daily can have, I've cut back right off the bat, mixing up consumption: One day on, 2-3 days off, 2 days on, 3 days off etc...

Posted update /\