Are there people who shouldn’t be taking probiotics? Elizabeth Tracey reports

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Probiotics are all the rage these days, with food products touting their active cultures and ability to improve gut health. Ashli Greenwald, a dietician at Johns Hopkins, says while most of us will benefit from consuming probiotics, for some it may not be a good idea.

It is without a doubt. Sometimes people are taking them and they don't need them sometimes there's side effects with probiotics. You could end up with gas or bloating or diarrhea there's certain people that shouldn't be taking probiotics. People that are immunocompromised, somebody undergoing chemo, somebody taking post transplant or even somebody with like an HIV infection because it could tip the microbiome in their gut and expose them to infections.  :29

Greenwald says if you have a chronic health condition you should talk with your doctor before embarking on consumption of lots of probiotics. She notes that it may be possible to improve gut health with supplements for those who can’t tolerate live cultures. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.