How to Choose a Probiotic

What are probiotics?

Probiotics are live microbes that can provide a health benefit when we consume them in sufficient amounts. But not all products are created equal. So how do you pick the right one for the benefit you’re looking for? 

Probiotic confusion

Have you ever considered taking a probiotic but felt overwhelmed when scanning the shelves in your local health store? Wondered which type is best? Whether multi-strain products are more effective than single-strain? Or if the number of colony-forming units (CFUs - live bacteria) actually matters?

With thousands of options at different price points, it’s hard to know where to spend your money. Well informed healthcare professionals will usually recommend choosing a probiotic backed by science. But that’s easier said than done - the probiotic names used in clinical studies often don’t match the brand names you see in shops.

The good news? A new, free tool - The UK Probiotics Guide - has recently been published, and it's going to make choosing a science-backed product much easier.

The UK Probiotics Guide

The guide is available as both a website and an app. Developed by the Alliance for Education in Probiotics and a team of independent experts, its goal is to help UK healthcare professionals and consumers make informed choices about probiotics. The resource already exists in Canada and the USA, but this is the first time the Alliance has published a UK edition.

To be featured in the database, products must:

• Be available to buy in the UK
• Contain strains recognised as safe by the European Food Safety Authority and the UK Food Standards Agency
• Have benefits backed by published human studies for the specific strains and combinations used

What’s a strain?

Scientists identify probiotics by genus, species, and strain. For example: Lactobacillus (genus) acidophilus (species) ABC 1234 (strain).

The strain matters, because different strains provide different benefits. While many probiotics share core gut health effects - like producing short chain fatty acids that help maintain a healthy gut environment - specific benefits (like easing constipation) are strain-specific. So if you want a probiotic for constipation, you’ll need to choose a strain that’s been shown to help with that.

How can I use the guide?

The guide lists science-backed probiotics for adults, children, and women’s health.

Products are shown by brand name, alongside the benefits they’ve been studied for. So for example, you can see which probiotics have evidence for supporting IBS (irritable bowel syndrome), easing constipation, or helping prevent traveller’s diarrhoea. This makes it easy to choose a probiotic strain that has been shown to offer a specific benefit.

In summary

The UK Probiotics Guide can cut through the noise of thousands of products, helping you find one that is backed by science. The authors plan to update it yearly as new evidence and products become available, making it a great resource for anyone considering trying a probiotic, or wanting to recommend one.