Probiotic FAQs
How much does Probiotic cost without insurance?
Probiotics are marketed as a broad variety of products under several premium and brand names. The average price of Probiotic is $41.56. With a SingleCare discount card and a prescription for Probiotic, you pay only $12.96 for 60, 250mg capsules.
How much does Probiotic cost with insurance?
Probiotics are neither prescription drugs nor covered by insurance plans. It is unlikely health insurance will pay for Probiotic even with a doctor's prescription. Currently, however, you will pay only $12.96 for 60, 250mg capsules of Probiotic with a SingleCare savings card.
Does Medicare cover Probiotic and how much does it cost?
Because Probiotics are over-the-counter products, Medicare prescription drug plans do not cover purchases them. For Medicare patients with a prescription for a Probiotic, bring your SingleCare discount card to any SingleCare participating pharmacy and pay as little as $12.96 for 60, 250mg capsules.
What is the brand name of Probiotic?
Probiotic is marketed as a wide variety of products under many premium and brand names. The best-known premium brands include Culturelle (DSM), Align (Proctor & Gamble), Florajen (Clarion Brands), Phillips Colon Health (Bayer), Florastor, TruBiotics (Bayer), and Purfem (vaginal suppository) (DSM). Generic probiotics are widely available as dietary supplements under familiar brand names such as CVS, Up & Up, Equate, and Jarrow. They contain some or all the bacteria strains found in premium brand products.
What is Probiotic?
A Probiotic is an over-the-counter supplement or medication that provides live cultures of “good” bacteria or yeast that may have health benefits. Probiotics come in three types: Probiotics taken orally (dietary supplements) or rectally (suppositories or enemas) to colonize the gut with “good” microorganisms; vaginal suppositories to colonize the vagina with “good” bacteria; and topical Probiotics to colonize skin tissues or hair with “good” bacteria or yeast.
Dietary supplements are the most familiar form of Probiotic. They are intended to colonize the gut with “good” bacteria (Lactobacillus or Bifidobacterium) or “good” yeast (Saccharomyces). These microorganisms have been shown to improve digestion, the absorption of nutrients by the immune system, and prevent or reduce bacterial infections in the gut. Many Probiotic supplements are also marketed as strengthening the immune system, improving vaginal health, treating various illnesses, stabilizing mood, and enhancing cognition and memory, but these benefits have not been demonstrated. Probiotic supplements are often prescribed to patients after a course of antibiotics to help repopulate the gastrointestinal system with critical microorganisms.
Probiotics are also administered rectally either as suppositories or enemas to populate the colon with “good” bacteria to treat or prevent gastrointestinal infections and conditions.
Probiotic vaginal suppositories are intended to colonize the vagina with “good” bacteria (Lactobacillus). They have been shown to help treat or prevent bacterial (vaginosis) or yeast infections in the vagina. They are also marketed as reducing vaginal dryness, improving vaginal odor, strengthening the immune system, and stabilizing mood, but these claims have not been verified.
Probiotics are becoming a popular ingredient in skincare and hair products. They are intended to colonize the skin or scalp with “good” microorganisms (Lactobacillus, Bifidobacterium, and Streptococcus thermophilus for skin creams and Lactobacillus, Lactococcus, Saccharomyces, and Kluyveromyces in shampoos). These products are claimed to protect the skin from bacterial infections and swelling (“calming” skin creams), removing free radicals from skin tissues, and promoting the growth of healthy hair. Some “probiotic” skin creams and shampoos, however, use a substance (Bifida ferment lysate) that is derived from the fermentation of dead bifidobacteria, but these products do not contain live cultures of beneficial microorganisms.
What are the side effects of Probiotic?
Side effects of Probiotics will depend on the product and how it is used. Side effects of topical and vaginal Probiotics are minimal and rarely experienced. Common side effects of Probiotic supplements, rectal suppositories, and enemas include but are not limited to gas, bloating, constipation, and thirst, but these usually subside within a day. While not an allergic reaction, the body sometimes reacts to the live bacteria by releasing histamines to fight off what the body thinks is an infection. Histamines cause the symptoms of allergic reactions, such as swelling, itching, and discomfort.
