Inulin

Does anyone take an inulin supplement? If so, can you suggest a good brand? I saw NOW inulin for pretty cheap on some Web site the other day and was thinking about trying it. For those who don't know, inulin is a prebiotic (supposed to help stimulate growth of good gut bacteria, or probiotics) and it's been shown to increase calcium absorption. It's also a good source of soluble fiber. It's added to Stonyfield Farm yogurt (which I used to eat but I can't find it in stores here anymore) and to this new Yoplait digestive yogurt, which I'm trying out now, too. Thanks in advance for any replies. =)

Have you tried contacting StonyField Farms via Web or 800 phone no. to ask where they distribute in your area? The commercial issues surrounding yogurt really annoy me; it's hard to find the good unadulterated stuff like SFF or Brown Cow in my neighborhood because the grocers stock whole refrigerator cases full of the junk brands that have added starch, sugar, & flavoring glop. Just give us those needed active cultures, folks! / Old Hat (nearly 30 yrs with left-sided UC ... [etc.])

Brown Cow yogurt is likely harder to find than SFF. It drives me nuts tracking down the 32 oz. containers, but I heartily recommend the vanilla if you can get it. I try to stick with the nonfat, but they also market lowfat & regular (cream top). 32 oz. can vary in price where I live from $3.29 to $5.15; can you believe it?  Brown Cow does not contain inulin, by the way, but it seems to have good cultures that help the colon to function better, at least in my experience. / Old Hat

Sara,

Metamucil is fine because it has psyllium husk in it. Fiber sure (from the makers of metamucil)-a seperate product, I had a bad reaction to becuase of the short length inulin it is mostly comprised of. In that form it doesn't turn into butyrate becuase most every kind of bacteria can use it for a food source and turn it into something you don't want. I actually like the cherry taste of my fiber choice. The texture is like candy to me and I haven't had candy in 10 years so it's a treat for me. I tried getting exclusively long chain inulin but no one sells it retail. They do sell it wholesale in 40 lbs containers I found out but that is a bit too much for just one person.

Sara,

Acacia fiber gets converted mainly to propionate which is not as beneficial as butyrate. Yes you will get gas from injesting resistant starches, that's not really a bad thing if you can handle the gas pains. I remember years ago if someone had pushed something to try on me that would have increased gas I wouldn't even think about taking something like that. However, the gas eventually goes away and the benefits to those with UC far far far outweighs the initial discomfort and should actually be a huge part of the diet as I regularly injest about 45 grams of resistant starch fiber a day.

i had terrible results after eating stonyfield yogurt with inulin. SCD says inulin is bad for reasons mentioned above. Psyllium however has been good to me. it seems that the tapioca works in a similar way, bu ti have not tried that treatment yet

I tried Pro-Bio and its inulin did give me alot of gas. Has anyone had that experience and does it go away if you keep it up a few days or so? I did it for 4 days and it wasn't going away, and was causing some pain too. I do wish they'd offer probiotics in an 'inulin free' version in those cases, but I am considering trying it again at a low dose, eg half a capsule, and building up- if it is a case of temporary gas.

I have been adding FOS/stevia packets (the brand is Stevia plus by SweetLeaf) to my plain-jane, brown cow, low fat yogurt and it isn't too bad. Also, I will blend up some berries, keep it in the fridge, and add a few spoonfuls to the yogurt. I know FOS (which is sometimes equated with inulin) and I am curious if stevia could also be broken down... it is supposed to just taste sweet and pass through undigested, but I wonder if probiotics could digest it. I don't think it matters much when you take it, though I typically just add it to what I am eating that needs sweetening and other fiber sources feed it later on.

SCD is a great diet, but I think the philosophy is slightly skewed or simply based on older assumptions. I now understand that FOS or inulin, though restricted on this diet, do not generally benefit the bad as much as the good bacteria. I wanted to take a few lines out of the "probiotics revolution" book (pg 271), refers to two prebiotic "super" fibers:
"Oligosaccharides are a form of soluble fiber found in vegetables. We can't digest them, but probiotic microbes can. One oligosaccharide, fructo-oligosaccharide (FOS), is a particular effective prebiotic. And a form of FOS called short-chain fructo-oligosaccharide (scFOS) is being considered as a possible sweetener for food, because it has a sweet taste.
"Inulin is another excellent prebiotic fiber. It's found in many vegetables, but the major source of inulin in the American diet are wheat, onions, and green bananas."