Dr. Mercola Probiotics

[Clifford, Cloud, Jake..and Kim]

Does anyone have an opinion on Dr. Mercola's probiotics?  It seems to have a lot more active bacteria and 14 different strains.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Mercola is basically a quack and a conman, and that's not just my opinion:
https://www.quackwatch.org/11Ind/mercola.html

https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/9-reasons-to-completely-ignore-jos...

https://geneticliteracyproject.org/glp-facts/joseph-mercola-alterna...

https://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Joseph_Mercola

I could go on, but you get the idea, lol. I don't recommend buying anything from Mercola, or from Karen Becker, of the same group & ilk.

If you need a really great probiotic (for dogs or yourself), there is nothing out there that comes close to VSL#3. 

[Kate C Pappas]

Karen: I respect all the information you give to people here. I admit I've used Mercola products for years because I believed what they said. Pray tell, how you came across them being quacks and what is it about Dr. Becker? I'm seriously interestedly. Coincidentally, I just ran out of their Probiotics and was wondering with what I should replace it. I don't believe there was a problem with it for my girls, but I want something new. In the meantime I'll look at your links and the VSL#3, of which I've never heard. I'm also suspicious of buying name brand things through Amazon. I've always run to Amazon for just about everything until I heard from a wise person that often, when things are from a '3rd party seller', you might not be getting the real thing, so why take a chance. Its hard to find objective articles about things sometimes. How did you find the VSL#3? Thank you in advance, Kate and her "Y" Girls

[Kate C Pappas]

Holy Moly! I read the first link quickly and Tropical Traditions Coconut Oil is what I have used for years. I didn't come across it through Mercola but heard about it through a friend. What I read about it, i liked. Not sure I will stop using that, but what do you recommend? On to more links.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

If you are talking about using coconut oil topically on yourself, that's fine. It's a moisturizer, nothing more. if you are talking about taking it internally, it has no proven benefits. None, despite what that quack Oz says. And you absolutely don;t want to give it to a dog; it has no beneifts and can actually make inflammation worse, due to the Omega 6 content.
There are no reliable clinical studies showing coconut oil to be any more beneficial than any other plant oil. Oz has made a fortune from it, and that's about the extent of the benefits, lol.  

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

VSL#3 was recommended by a veterinary internal medicine specialist after Jack was diagnosed with IBD. There is a ton of research behind it, including a $100,000 study (with clean funding) done by Albert Jergens at Iowa State vet school. It's a human probiotic and it can be purchased at pharmacies. I found CVS to have the best prices. It must be kept refrigerated and is usually sold behind the pharmacy counter for that reason, although it is available w/o prescription.
I first started being suspicious of Dr becker and the Mercola website because the things I was reading there did not make sense to me; I have a science background and knew quite a bit about certain commonly discussed health issues in dogs because of JD's health issues and his large team of board certified specialists. Some of what I read and heard Becker say I knew to be flat out wrong. (And she practices in my area, so I knew some patients who also told me that what she says on her website is very different from what she says in person, lol.) So I started doing some digging. 

[Kate C Pappas]

Karen: Thank you for your digging. I try and do the best I can regarding research and at some point it's often hard to know 'which side' is right. Fortunately I'm doing something right as my girls are very healthy at 12 1/2 and 9 this month but it's always good to get input and learn from others. Yarra's only issue is arthritis and she gets acupuncture and cold laser therapy. She was misdiagnosed with LarPar so I went for a second opinion.

Thanks again, Kate and her "Y" Girls.