<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>> Hello, You might want to skip reading this if you aren’t interested in C. difficile infection. I sent a message to the group asking for advice on how to deal with a C. difficile infection and asking specifically for advice on probiotics. Sorry it’s taken me so long to summarize. Many people asked me to explain what C. difficile is. It’s a gut bacterium carried frequently by healthy children under two yrs old and much less frequently by healthy adults. When a person takes antibiotics, particularly for extended periods of time, healthy gut flora die. C. difficile is not sensitive to most commonly used or broad-spectrum antiobiotics, so it can take over in the absence of competition. This usually results in diarrhea, sometimes with severe abdominal pain. It’s a common infection in hospitals and nursing homes, where a lot of people are sick and taking antibiotics. In most cases, stopping the antiobiotics stops the problem. In some cases, the remaining normal gut flora can’t fight it off, and antibiotics effective against C. difficile are prescribed. First try is Flagyl, which is cheap but not always effective and can be hazardous for long-term use (neurotoxic); it’s effective against other organisms like Giardia, too. Vancomycin is the second line of defense; it’s more effective and much more expensive. Because C. difficile forms spores that are not susceptible to antibiotics, it is not uncommon for the first round of antiobiotics to stop the symptoms, which recur weeks later when the spores become active. Many doctors recommend taking probiotics after taking the antiobiotics, to recolonize the gut with good organisms that will crowd out or hold in check any remaining C. difficile. Multiple rounds of antiobiotics may be necessary to kill C. difficile. In severe and prolonged cases, C. difficile bacteria can cause pseudomembranous colitis, a condition where the bacteria form plaques on the intestinal lining. This can cause bleeding, severe pain, or death, particularly in the elderly and those weakened by other illnesses. Important point—even though I had this infection for at least weeks and maybe longer, my blood work was completely normal throughout this ordeal, with no indication of infection or poor health, even though I was in severe pain, bleeding, eventually unable to eat, and lost 17 lbs in 4 wks, so don’t think normal blood work means you can’t have an infection. My PA said this sometimes happens with young and otherwise healthy people. Thanks very much for the great advice I received on this question. See below. Erin Some responses from others: I was diagnosed with C diff about 1 1/2 years after I was diagnosed with Celiac. I took Flagyl for 10 days and, since that time, have felt better than I've felt in years. I'm guessing that I got the C. diff when I was on antibiotics for pneumonia (before my celiac diagnosis), so I was walking around with C. diff for almost 2 years! During the 10 days I was on Flagyl, my naturopath had me take Florastor http://www.florastor.com/FAQ.asp After the 10 days were up, she had me take Acidophilus twice a day, and she said I should probably take it for the rest of my life. My doc recommends the Metagenics Ultra Dophilus DF (dairy/lactose & gluten free), which is highly concentrated, powder form that is stored in the refrigerator. My C diff started to recur one time, and I'm sure I nipped it in the bud with the acidopholus (I had been slacking off on the twice a day thing, and often forgetting on weekends). Anytime you take an anti-biotic, you should take an acidophilous. We take Culturelle. You can buy it at any drug store. It's the only one I have found that does not bother our Celiac family. C. difficile is caused by prolonged OR excessive use of antibiotics knocking out the beneficial flora in your gut allowing this awful anaerobe to flourish and cause you problems. It is common in the chronically ill as a treatment or "hospital"-induced infection. Its treatment by antibiotics alone is compounding the problem. You must also replace the beneficial organisms by taking acidophilis tablets, eating probiotics etc. and I suggest you take megadoses of them with your antibiotics and in between. You must recolonise your gut with the goodies because all you have now is baddies. I think the recommended drug of choice for that is flagil. Taken by mouth to act directly on the bug. PB8 is a good form of probiotics and is GF. It is found in the refrigerated section as are all GOOD probiotics. You can also add plain yogurt from active cultures to your diet (Dannon plain is GF). Also I have heard Kefir is good. Last time I checkled Culturelle was GF. And it's OTC and does not need refrigeration. probiotica Nexium Right now I'm taking NOW brand Acidophilus that I found at the local health food store. It states on the bottle that it contains no wheat, corn, yeast, soy, egg, preservatives or gluten. I haven't had any problems with it. They do have a web site. www.nowfoods.com ...the probiotics I take are: SUPER DIGESTAWAY by Solarway and JARRO-DOPHILUS by Jarrow formulas. I get both in a health food store. Natren's Healthy Trinity is gf and THE BEST probiotic on the market. Expensive, but worth it. My doc is very impressed with Saccromyces boulardii. It is a kind of yeast that is good and kills bad gut bacteria and bad gut yeast. It acidifies the gut too. His protocol is 4 pills, 3xday between meals for 2 weeks. Then cut back to 2 pills, 2xday between meals indefinitely. It has to be refrigerated...You can get it from NEEDS.com- ship overnite since refrigerated. Good probiotics are: Custom Probiotics. Their # is:800/219-8405. Also Culturelle Lactobacillus GG. I can get this from my local People's Pharmacy or from NEEDS.com which is usu. cheaper. I would highly recommend kefir. The best brand I've found is made by Helios. It is organic, and you can get it plain, w/out sugar. Get that. Check w/your local health foods store. If they don't have it, they could order it for you. Or, contact Helios at www.heliosnutrition.com. It keeps for months, so if you want to get a case, you can just store it in your refrigerator. It does lose some of its potency if it goes past the expiration date, but it is still good. Do not freeze it, as that kills the probiotic organisms. Even if you don't tolerate other dairy products, I urge you to try this. It really agrees w/me. _________________________________________________________________ Protect your PC - get McAfee.com VirusScan Online http://clinic.mcafee.com/clinic/ibuy/campaign.asp?cid=3963 *Support summarization of posts, reply to the SENDER not the CELIAC List*