What probiotics make you poop?
Top 10 strains from randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies for people who don't respond well to fibre or prefer not to use laxatives.
Although studies do show that specific strains can help with constipation, it’s still a bit of trial and error, because people respond to probiotics differently.
That’s why I list 10 of them below, giving you more options in case the most popular ones don’t work for you.
Best probiotics for constipation
L. reuteri DSM 17938
A small, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of 40 adults with chronic constipation found that this probiotic can make you poop more frequently but it doesn’t improve stool consistency.
Participants took it for 4 weeks. By the end of the study people taking the probiotic had about 5 bowel movements per week, compared with about 4 per week in the placebo group.
L. rhamnosus IDCC 3201
This small, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study looked at 30 people with IBS-C. Half took L. rhamnosus IDCC 3201 and half took a placebo for 8 weeks.
The group taking the probiotic noticed improvements in bowel movements, bloating, and overall bowel-related comfort compared with the placebo group.
Bifidobacterium longum CCFM 1112
Another small, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study with 56 participants found that after 4 weeks the probiotic group showed better stool consistency and noticed that constipation had less impact on their quality of life.
Lactobacillus casei Shirota
In the study, people who drank the Lactobacillus casei Shirota probiotic started to have less severe constipation after about 2 weeks.
They took it for 4 weeks in total, and by the end, most people in the probiotic group said it helped their constipation compared to the placebo group. However, it didn’t help with bloating or gas.
Lactobacillus plantarum Lp3a
This probiotic was tested both in mice and in 120 people with constipation. The human trial lasted only 7 days, but patients in the probiotic group experienced significant improvements in constipation symptoms compared with the control group.
It seems Lactobacillus plantarum Lp3a works really fast.
Lactiplantibacillus plantarum P9
Another L. plantarum strain was tested for chronic constipation. In the study, 78 participants took 100 billion live bacteria per day for 6 weeks.
This is a very high dose compared with commercially available supplements, which typically contain between 1 and 10 billion per capsule.
The probiotic group experienced constipation relief, meaning more complete, spontaneous bowel movements per week compared with placebo.
Bifidobacterium animalis DN-173 010
The study showed that B. animalis DN-173 010 helps stool move through the colon more quickly in healthy women.
L. plantarum LP01, B. breve BR03 and B. animalis lactis BS01
These strains were used in a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study: L. plantarum and B. breve combined, and B. animalis lactis alone, over 30 days.
Participants took a total of 5 billion CFU per day.
Here’s what the authors concluded:
The intake of an effective amount of mixed L. plantarum LP01 and B. breve BR03 or B. animalis subsp. lactis BS01 for 30 days is able to significantly relieve the evacuation disorders and hard stools, thus providing a useful tool for the management of such condition, which is particularly widespread in industrialized countries at any age.
Probiotics for Constipation: Strains and Doses
I can see that L. plantarum comes up more often than other strains, so it might be a useful option for people who do not respond well to fibre or prefer not to use laxatives.
I was surprised by how much dosing varies across the studies. Sometimes 5 billion CFU is enough - this is a standard probiotic capsule - while other studies have used as much as 100 billion, which is quite high.