Q. What are the differences between Healthy Trinity and the Healthy Start System?
A. Healthy Trinity and the Healthy Start System provide the same 3 beneficial bacteria species. Healthy Trinity is our most potent probiotic at 30 billion CFU per capsule. It combines 3 powerful super strains of probiotics in one convenient Oil Matrix capsule. The Healthy Start System is a kit containing three bottles, each one with a different, gentle (lower CFU) serving of one probiotic super strain available in either a powder or capsule form. Ask your probiotic consultant how to layer Natren’s probiotic strains to get specific benefits to meet your individual needs.

Q. What are the differences between powdered probiotics and capsules?
A. The capsules contain the same freeze-dried probiotics as the powders. The powders allow you to use the amount you desire and are better suited for people who have trouble swallowing capsules. The capsules offer the convenience of a pre-measured serving. Individual preference is the determining factor in selecting which one is right for you.

Q. How long should a baby take Life Start?
A. Life Start is the preferred, specially formulated probiotic for infants and toddlers up to the age of four. It can be used successfully by people of all ages or were born by Cesarean Section or were not breast-fed. If you want dairy free, use Life Start Vegan. If you want s goat milk version, use Life Start 2

Q. Why do the products need to be refrigerated?
A. Like all living creatures, probiotics need to be protected from harsh environments. Their life-spans are diminished by heat, light and moisture. Natren probiotics are packaged in dark amber glass bottles with tin lids to protect them from harmful light and moisture. They are shipped in thermally controlled boxes to keep them cool. Because of this we are able to guarantee their potency through the printed expiration date. Without such care and a guarantee, you may be wasting your money.

Q. How much is too much of a good thing?
A. Natren supplements are safe at any level. You can combine various probiotics and increase the amount until you achieve the desired results.

Q. If a probiotic is cultured on goat’s milk, is that dairy free because it doesn’t come from cows?
A. Goat’s milk is still considered a dairy product; however, some people with sensitive digestive systems find it easier to digest. If you are allergic to milk protein, please consult your healthcare practitioner before using a product containing goat’s milk.

Q. Do your products contain gluten?
A. All Natren probiotic supplements are free from gluten and gluten derivatives.

Q.Why does Natren recommend the use of unchilled, filtered (chlorine-free) water with their products and not ordinary tap water?
A. Tap water often contains chlorine or fluoride with pesticide residues and other undesirable chemicals. Since chlorine and fluoride are used to destroy harmful bacteria, these chemicals will harm the beneficial bacteria as well, thereby diminishing the positive effects.

Q. What is the ideal number of cfu to look for in probiotics?
A. Before you look at cfu, or colony forming units, you need to be sure you know what strains you are getting so you know if they are going to be effective. You can have many strains of bacteria in a product, but if they are not the right kind, they won’t help you.
If you’ve identified the strain and it is clearly labeled, then you can turn your attention to the cfu. The minimum serving you should take is 1 billion cfu – it’s the least amount of organisms needed to get a measurable effect. A therapeutic amount is around 10 billion cfu. Natren® has always listed potency of specific strains in cfu, when no other companies were doing that and the practice continues even today.

Q. How long can probiotics stay un-refrigerated before they lose their potency?
A. There is no way to guarantee the potency of probiotics if they have been without refrigeration at any time. When probiotic products are shipped without thermal control, they can be exposed to very high temperatures. Since probiotics are living organisms, you can be guaranteed of their potency only if they have been shipped in thermally controlled boxes and stored refrigerated. Natren probiotics are refrigerated from manufacturing throughout the entire warehousing cycle. Our unique thermal shipping containers maintain the integrity of our probiotics. This has always been Natren’s standard when other companies have misrepresented the potency of their probiotic products by claiming they are shelf-stable; they conveniently don’t mention that their products are not stable when exposed to harsh temperatures in the warehouse, shipping and distribution processes. If other companies cannot guarantee potency of each strain through a printed expiry date, how can you trust any of their claims?

Q. What is the best way to protect probiotic bacteria from stomach acid?
A. The powder products are protected with the intrinsic supernatant, part of the original nourishing and protective culture medium, which provides a natural buffer against gastric acid.

Micro-enrobing with a unique oil matrix is the best way to protect probiotic bacteria from stomach acid. Natren Healthy Trinity® is the first to introduce a micro-enrobing, unique delivery system – a hard gel capsule in which three super strains of probiotic bacteria are suspended in sunflower oil and vitamin E to keep the bacteria separate, noncompetitive and protected from gastric digestive juices for optimum absorption.

The bacteria strains must be bile-resistant. All Natren probiotics have laboratory-tested bile-resistant strains which will survive bile salts.

Q. What are the differences between the three strains of probiotic bacteria in Healthy Trinity?

A. The unique and powerful strains that make up Healthy Trinity are Lactobacillus acidophilus, NAS super strain, to optimize beneficial activity in the small intestine;Bifidobacterium bifidum, Malyoth super strain to support the function of the large intestine; and Lactobacillus bulgaricus, LB-51 super strain to police the transient flora, which is part of the 40 percent of dry-weight fecal matter.

Q. What Natren Products Are Suitable for Vegans?
A. All of Natren’s Dairy Free POWDERS are Vegan; i.e. Megadophilus Dairy Free and Bifido Factor Dairy Free powders. Take 1 tsp. a day of each, up to three times a day for rapid results. Note: Digesta-Lac Dairy Free is only available in veggie caps, not in powder form.

If you’re not into taking powders, Natren also has a veggie cap system; so, any dairy-free powder in veggie caps is suitable for Vegans. All the products referenced above are available in Veggie Caps. Note: Digesta-Lac Dairy Free is only available in veggie caps, not in powder form.

Finally, for the Vegan guru who’s serious about his/her probiotic health, Natren offers theDairy Free Healthy Start System in veggie caps.

Q. How often should I be taking Probiotics?
A. Each human being has a unique gut eco system made up of approximately 100 trillion microorganisms in their GI tract. Changes to this complex, yet specific to each person eco system, can be impacted and modified by: genetic predisposition, aging, daily stress, consumption of antimicrobial substances including antibiotics, diet, travel, sleep patterns as well as being affected by normal level of microbes taken in through food, air and water. In addition, microbes are shed regularly; an average person’s dry weight fecal matter can contain about 40% microbes. Normal elimination may change the composition of microbes found in our gut on an ongoing basis. For these reasons we consider a customized probiotic supplement program to be an ongoing regimen that helps support the body in a number of ways. At Natren we believe that the health of every individual can be improved by three pillars of health that include: the correct Natren probiotic supplement program, diet and exercise. We encourage everyone to take time to develop their own individual probiotic supplementation program with the help of our trained and dedicated Natren probiotic consultants. We will also offer simple starter programs for diet and exercise available in simple tri-fold pamphlets authored by health and fitness professionals. The good news is that you cannot take too much of Natren Probiotic supplements. This is a life long journey, learning to improve your internal eco system and maintain healthy levels of these essential beneficial probiotic microorganisms for life. It is our opinion, that such a dedication and caring to improve the internal microbial eco system can change the health of the world.