Food poisoning when travelling? 6 Vegan and dairy-free probiotics that can strengthen your gut health

It’s either you’re a headache person or a stomachache person… and I am the latter.

Since I was young, I’ve always had gut problems. Whenever I travel to any place that I am not used to (and have a meal there), the toilet would be my best friend.

Growing up, I just accepted the fact that I should limit myself from spicy food, anything with dairy and just basically anything that appeared too exotic to me.

Not until I was diagnosed with an auto-immune disorder… It was then that my gut problems finally made sense to me.

Long story short, I was advised by a functional medicine practitioner to supplement my diet with probiotics. Eventually, I had fewer visits to the toilet and I feel better in so many ways!

That’s why I am a huge advocate for supplementing your diet with these good bacteria to help heal your gut. Especially when travelling!

Unsure of how to select probiotics that would likely work for you? Here, I’ll be sharing with you what you should look out for!

TL;DR: Hand-picked probiotics supplement for your travels:

How I picked probiotics:

✅ Various number of live cultures per gram (CFU count) so you can take according to your needs
✅ Options for supplements that come with and without prebiotics
✅ Minimal fillers/binders (other ingredients)
✅ Dairy-free

Disclaimer: Different people may react differently to different probiotics. Please consult a professional before consuming them to be safe!

Name	CFU count	Best use
Jarrow Formulas: Saccharomyces Boulardii + MOS More Reviews on Amazon More Reviews on iHerb	5 billion	Travellers’ diarrhoea, Antibiotic-associated diarrhoea Prebiotics:✅
Doctor’s Recipes Women’s Probiotic More Reviews on Amazon	50 billion	Vaginal and urinary health support Prebiotics:✅
Gut Comfort™ Probiotic More Reviews on Amazon	3 billion	Common belly pain. Prebiotics:✅
California Gold Nutrition: LactoBif Probiotics More Reviews on iHerb	30 billion	Digestive support Prebiotics:✅
Culturelle, Probiotics: Health & Wellness More Reviews on iHerb	15 billion	Dietary supplement Prebiotics:🚫
Renew Life: Ultimate Flora, Extra Go-Pack Probiotic More Reviews on iHerb	30 billion	Digestive and immune health support Prebiotics:🚫

How to select probiotics that would likely work for you:

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1. Make sure they’re dairy-free to avoid bloating!

Did you know that humans were not meant to digest dairy?

As adults, we have reduced production of lactase, the enzyme needed to digest lactose (found in dairy) in our bodies.

That is why some of us may experience abdominal pain, bloating, flatulence, nausea, and diarrhoea a few hours after dairy consumption.

Some probiotic strains are cultured on a base medium containing dairy.

Do know that before they are packaged, the strains are separated from any medium. But to be extra careful, there might be small traces in the final product.

These traces might cause gut problems such as bloating when you consume the probiotics.

So if you are sensitive to dairy, avoid any probiotics with traces of it.

Click here to read more on dairy-free probiotics options >>>

2. No improvement after taking probiotics? You are missing this crucial ingredient.

For probiotics to flourish, it requires prebiotics.

Prebiotics are fibres and natural sugars that promote good bacteria environment in the gut.

It is essentially food to probiotics and without enough prebiotics, your probiotics can’t provide thriving microflora in your gut.

If you tend to avoid greens in your meals, it can possibly reduce probiotics’ effectiveness.

However, thanks to technology, many probiotics supplements have prebiotics incorporated as well.

Simply look out for these prebiotics in your probiotics:

● Inulin
● Mannitol
● Maltodextrin
● Fructo-oligosaccharide (FOS)
● Galacto-oligosaccharide (GOS)
● Mannose oligosaccharides (MOS)

But if you find yourself unable to tolerate these prebiotics (which can happen!), there’s always the natural way of supplying prebiotics to your gut.

Examples of food that are high in prebiotics:

The lack of prebiotics might be one of the possible reasons your probiotics don’t have any effect on you (except for the possibility that the strains are already dead upon purchase, which can also happen).

Click here to read more on prebiotics + probiotics options >>>

3. ‘Useless’ ingredients you might be sensitive to. Spot the fillers and binders!

We take probiotics for the active ingredients — the good bacteria.

So why do most of them have so many ‘Other ingredients’ in them?

Probiotics supplements are manufactured commercially and thus these fillers act as the necessary base for the contents.

They keep the strains together and stable for consumption.

With that said, these elements might cause gas or bloating if you are sensitive to such ingredients.

Before buying a supplement, please check the Supplement Facts section, especially the “Other Ingredients” section.

Here are some commonly found fillers found in probiotics brands:

● Magnesium stearate
● Silicon dioxide
● Titanium dioxide
● Microcrystalline cellulose
● Stearic acid
● Vegetable gum

When I look for a probiotic, I make sure it does not use so many unnecessary fillers, colours, flavours and ingredients I can’t even pronounce.

While these fillers/binders are required, try to minimise consumption to reduce the risk of irritability and intolerance towards such ingredients.

This is just a personal rule, I prefer those with 5 ‘other ingredients’ or less.

My recommended probiotics supplements that might help your gut issues:

For immune-compromised individuals and children, please consult your healthcare professional before using this product. Products are in stock and prices stated are correct as of publishing date (October 2022).

1. Jarrow Formulas: Saccharomyces Boulardii + MOS

● Price: ~$60/bottle
● Capsules: 90 capsules
● Serving size: 1 or 2 capsules per day (or as recommended by healthcare professionals)
● CFU count: 5 billion
● Best for: Travelers’ diarrhoea, Antibiotic-associated diarrhoea, H. Pylori infection

Ingredient list:

● Active ingredients: Saccharomyces Boulardii, Mannan-Oligosaccharides (MOS)
● Other ingredients: Tapioca starch, delayed-release veggie capsule (hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, water), silicon dioxide and vitamin C (antioxidant)

2. Doctor’s Recipes Women’s Probiotic

● Price: ~$30/bottle
● Capsules: 60 capsules
● Serving size: 2 capsules per day (or as recommended by healthcare professionals)
● CFU count: 50 billion
● Best for: Vaginal and urinary health support

Ingredient list:

● Active ingredients: L.acidophilus, L.rhamnosus, L.crispatus, L.plantarum, L.paracasei, L.bulgaricus, L.reuteri, L.casei, L.salivarius, L.helveticus, L. gasseri. B.lactis, B. bifidum, B.longum, B.breve, B. adolescentis, B. infantis, Leuconostoc mesenteroides, Lactococcus lactis, Streptococcus thermophiles
● Other ingredients: Plant cellulose, purified water.

3. Gut Comfort™ Probiotic

● Price: ~$20/bottle
● Capsules: 30 capsules.
● Serving size: 1 capsule per day (or as recommended by healthcare professionals)
● CFU count: 3 billion
● Best for: Common belly pain

Ingredient list:

● Active ingredients: Pediococcus acidilactici KABP-021, L. plantarum KABP™-022, L. plantarum KABP™-02, Maltodextrin
● Other ingredients: Magnesium Stearate, silicon dioxide, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (vegetable capsule).

4. California Gold Nutrition: LactoBif Probiotic

● Price: ~$20/bottle
● Serving size: 1 capsule per day (or as recommended by healthcare professionals)
● CFU count: 30 billion
● Best for: Digestive support.

Ingredient list:

● Active ingredients: Lactobacillus acidophilus, Bifidobacterium lactis, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Lactobacillus plantarum, Bifidobacterium longum, Bifidobacterium breve, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus salivarius
● Other ingredients: Microcrystalline Cellulose, Modified Cellulose (Veggie Capsule), Silicon Dioxide (Silica), and Magnesium Stearate (Non-GMO Vegetable Source).

5. Culturelle Probiotics: Health & Wellness

● Price: ~$30/bottle
● Capsules: 30 capsules
● Serving size: 1 capsule per day (or as recommended by healthcare professionals)
● CFU count: 15 billion
● Best for: Dietary supplement.

Ingredient list:

● Active ingredients: Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG
● Other ingredients: Microcrystalline cellulose, hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, vegetable magnesium stearate, and titanium dioxide (color).

6. Renew Life: Ultimate Flora™ Extra Care Go-Pack Probiotic

● Price: ~$30/bottle
● Capsules: 30 capsules
● Serving size: 1 capsule per day (or as recommended by healthcare professionals)
● CFU count: 30 billion
● Best for: Dietary supplement.

Ingredient list:

● Active ingredients: Bifidobacterium lactis BI-04®, Bifidobacterium  lactis HN019, Bifidobacterium lactis Bi-07®, Bifidobacterium infantis Bi-26™, Lactobacillus plantarum Lp-115®, Lactobacillus  rhamnosus GG, Lactobacillus  acidophilus NCFM®, Lactobacillus lactis LI-23™, Lactobacillus  casei Lc-11®, Lactobacillus paracasei Lpc-37, Lactobacillus  acidophilus La-14®, Lactobacillus brevis Lbr-35™
● Other ingredients: Microcrystalline cellulose, capsule (hypromellose, gellan gum), and medium chain triglycerides.

Are there any types of supplements you hope to see me recommend? Do comment and share with me below!

PLEASE NOTE: All the above information is correct at the date of publication. If you come across any changes or updates, please let us know and we will update the information accordingly. Thank you! Tell us

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