Probiotics An Alternative To Fecal Transplants

Dr. Bakken suggests that the preferred treatment for antibiotic-resistant Clostridium infections usually would be a fecal transplant. This procedure is exactly what is sounds like. Fecal matter is extracted from a healthy donor and implanted by colonoscopy into a patient who has the antibiotic-resistant infection. The feces contains both a variety of bacteria that can control the Clostridium infection in the recipient and the fibers that feed them. The idea of a fecal transplant is unpleasant, but the procedure works.

Dr. Bakken selected a group of 25 patients, 21 women and 4 men, who had declined fecal microbiota transplantation but who had recurrent Clostridium infections that were not responding to antibiotics. He instructed them to consume a dairy product called kefir (Lifeway Kefir, Lifeway Foods, Inc) on a daily basis as he slowly reduced the amounts of antibiotics they received. Gradually withdrawing the antibiotics, rather than stopping them abruptly, was important to avoid massive "bloom" of the Clostridium and even worse problems, but the antibiotics had to be withdrawn to allow other bacteria to flourish.

Kefir, alternatively known as milk kefir or bulgaros, is a traditional fermented milk beverage of the northern Caucasus mountains. It was made by inoculating milk with "grains" of kefir from an older batch and hanging the bag in a doorway, so it would be bumped by anyone entering or leaving the room to keep the mixture stirred. Modern kefir is from cow's milk, sheep's milk, or goat's milk and undergoes two filtration steps to make a smoother product. Raw milk is sometimes used to make the product.

Dr. Bakken's patients drank at least 5 ounces (120 ml) of kefir 3 times a day, and more often if they wished. They were told to take their antibiotics every 72 hours, rather than every day, and antibiotic dosages were reduced every two weeks.

Kefir wasn't a perfect treatment. Patients had on average four relapses of the infection during the first 12 months of the study. However, all of the participants in the study had normal, formed stools (rather than runny diarrhea) by the end of three months and 21 out of 25 stayed symptom free even after they were taken off antibiotics completely.

Bakken admits that he does not know whether the success of the treatment was due to the prolonged use of vancomycin or the probiotic effect of the kefir, or both. However, there is no doubt that this method saves on costly antibiotics, and he believes that the method may work with yogurt and other probiotic products.

See Also: Treating Gut Bacteria May Treat Diabetes

However, work with your doctor on changing your diet to control antibiotic-resistant bowel infections. Kefir or a similar product may be exactly what you need to achieve freedom from both antibiotics and your disease.