Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Why did ProTren choose the three strains of probiotic bacteria in Trenev Trio?
A. The unique and powerful strains that make up Trenev Trio are Lactobacillus acidophilus, NAS super strain, chosen to optimize beneficial activity in the small intestine; Bifidobacterium bifidum, Malyoth super strain, chosen to support the function of the large intestine; and Lactobacillus bulgaricus, LB-51 super strain, chosen to police the transient flora, each strain was selected for its unique ability to target a particular section of the G.I. tract.
Q. What is the best way to protect probiotic bacteria from stomach acid?
A. To begin with, the bacterial strains must be bile-resistant. All ProTren probiotics have laboratory-tested bile-resistant strains that will survive bile salts. In addition, Trenev Trio® is the first to introduce a unique micro-enrobing, oil matrix delivery system within a hard gel capsule. The three super strains of probiotic bacteria are suspended in sunflower oil and vitamin E to keep them separate, noncompetitive and protected from gastric digestive juices for maximum survival at pH 1.7 for over an hour. ProTren powder products are also protected with the intrinsic supernatant, part of the original nourishing and protective culture medium, which provides a natural buffer against gastric acid.
Q. What is the ideal number of colony forming units to look for in probiotics?
A. Before you look at colony forming units, or cfu, you need to be sure you know what strains you are getting to ensure that 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 or your patients.
Once you've identified the most effective strain or strains, then you can turn your attention to the cfu. The minimum serving of any strain that 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. ProTren® has always listed potency of specific strains in cfu, even before other companies were doing so, and the practice continues today.
Q. Why do ProTren 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. ProTren probiotics are packaged in dark glass bottles with tin lids to protect them from harmful light and moisture. They are shipped in thermally controlled boxes to keep them cool. This enables us to guarantee their potency through the printed expiration date. Without such care and a guarantee, you and your patients may be wasting your money.
All ProTren Precision Probiotics should be refrigerated upon arrival. We suggest that someone retrieve the package before the end of the day. We ship the products via UPS 2-day shipping in thermally controlled boxes. Once received, promptly refrigerate.
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 proper temperature control 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. ProTren 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 ProTren'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. Why does ProTren 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. Chlorine and fluoride are used to destroy harmful bacteria, and so these chemicals will harm the beneficial bacteria as well, diminishing the positive effects.
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 more flexibility in dosing, as patients can use the amount and mixture of probiotics they desire, and are better suited for people who have trouble swallowing capsules. We always recommend powders to anyone dealing with major G.I. sensitivities as they can easily be scaled up or down until the desired effects are achieved. The capsules offer the convenience of a pre-measured serving. It 's just a matter of individual preference.
Q. Do babies and infants need different probiotics than adults do?
A. Bifidobacterium infantis (found in Life Start Pro and Bifido Pro) is the best probiotic for infants because it is the predominant organism in the large intestine of healthy breast-fed babies. Lactobacillus acidophilus supplementation is not normally recommended for babies, as it is not the prominent beneficial microorganism in healthy, breast-fed infants. After weaning, Lactobacillus acidophilus increases in the small intestine.
Q. Do your products contain gluten?
A. No. All ProTren probiotic supplements are free from gluten and gluten derivatives.
Q. What ProTren products are suitable for vegans?
A. All of ProTren's formulas are suitable for vegans with the exception of Trenev Trio, which utilizes gelatin in the capsule. The rest of the ProTren line uses vegetable based capsules and dairy free formulas suitable for vegans.
Q. How often should I be taking probiotics?
A. Each human being has a unique gut ecosystem made up of approximately 100 trillion microorganisms in their GI tract. Changes to this complex, yet specific to each person ecosystem, 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 levels 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.
Q. How much is too much of a good thing?
A. ProTren supplements are safe at any level. You and your patients can combine various probiotics and increase the amount until the desired results are achieved.
At ProTren we believe that the health of every individual can be improved by three pillars of health that include: the correct ProTren 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 ProTren probiotic consultants or with the help or a professional who has been trained in the use of our probiotic products.
The good news is that you cannot take too much of ProTren Probiotic supplements. This is a life long journey, learning to improve your internal ecosystem 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 ecosystem can change the health of the world.