ProbioSlim Review: Is it the best probiotic for weight loss?

Summary

What is ProbioSlim?

ProbioSlim is a probiotic supplement designed to promote digestive health and support weight loss. It is one of many “weight management” probiotics currently on the market (the big ones being Bio X4 and Provitalize).

According to the ProbioSlim website, this probiotic delivers the following benefits:

1. Promotes healthy digestion
2. Replenishes good bactria
3. Helps you lose weight

Regular readers of this site will know that any good probiotic helps you lose weight; enhancing gut health leads to better appetite control, nutrient absorption, and blood sugar control (which means less over-eating). Yet ProbioSlim goes further and claims to be particularly efficacious for weight loss – more so than other probiotics.

Is this really true?

Does ProbioSlim really work as advertised? Is it safe? Is ProbioSlim the best probiotic for weight loss? I’ll answer all of these questions in detail in my full ProbioSlim review below.

ProbioSlim ingredients

What is in ProbioSlim exactly?

Here is the ProbioSlim ingredients list as it appears on the bottle:

In case that isn’t clear, here is a breakdown of the full ProbioSlim ingredients list:

• LS3664™ Whole Health Superblend 544 mg
  • LactoSpore® Bacillus coagulans

There is so much wrong with this formula that I don’t even know where to start! It is unusual to see a probiotic go ‘all in’ on a single bacteria strain, especially if it is described as a “blend”. It is even more unusual to see no CFU count!

I’ll now discuss ProbioSlim’s single ingredient – LactoSpore – in a little more detail.

LactoSpore Bacillus Coagulans – 544mg

Since the LS3664™ Whole Health Superblend in ProbioSlim contains just one ingredient, I’m going to just talk about that ingredient.

Bacillus coagulans, formerly known as Lactobacillus sporogenes until taxonomy changes in 1939, is a lactic acid-producing bacteria species. While it does produce L+lactic acid, Bacillus coagulans is not a Lactobacillus strain of bacteria as neither Lacobacillus no Bifidobacterium strains are sporeforming. Bacillus coagulans is sporeforming, so it does not class as either of these common bacteria species.

B coagulans is found in fermented foods such as sauerkraut, kimchi, and yogurt. However, for most people, supplements are going to be the mot realistic way to consume significant quantities of this probiotic bacteria.

So why would anyone want to consume B. coagulans?

Well, studies have shown that there are multiple, substantial benefits to consuming Bacillus coagulans. Various clinical trials have found B. coagulans effective for treating IBS, constipation, intestinal gas, and even rheumatoid arthritis (due to apparent anti-inflammatory action).

Lactic acid producing bacteria, including B. coagulans, largely work through competitive inhibition; they basically out-compete harmful bacteria in the gut, staving them of food.

According to the LactoSpore websoite, the B. coagulans in ProbioSlim supplement is partoicularly effective for improving gut health. Thery do not, however, say how exactly. More worryingly, LactoSpore seem to believe that B. coagulans is a Lactobacillus strain of Bacteria, when it most certainly is not!

Formula analysis: My review of ProbioSlim’s ingredients

All things considered, I really don’t understand why ProbioSlim is so popular. There is absolutely nothing remarkable about this probiotic at all, and it does not look like it would be particularly effective at promoting weight loss!

ProbioSlim contains a single ingredient: LactoSpore, which is a branded form of B. coagulans bacteria.

We are not told the CFU count (or in this case the spores per gram) of the bacteria; all we are told is that there is 544mg of LactoSpore in each serving of ProbioSlim. LactoSpore is available in various strenghts (6 billion spores per gram up to 100 billion spores per gram).

We therefore have no way of knowing how many spore-forming units of B coagulans we get per serving of ProbioSlim, which makes it impossible to judge the potency, side effct risks, or long-term effects.

But that isn’t even my main issue with ProbioSlim.

The major problem with ProbioSlim is the fact that it doesn’t contain a diverse array of probiotic bacteria. By going ‘all in’ on a single species – B. coagulans – ProbioSlim does not deliver the complex package of bacteria needed to properly fix an ibalanced gut microbiome. Most good probiotics combine anywhere from 3 to 6 different strains of probiotic bacteria to make sure your gut has all the species it needs to function properly. ProbioSlim doesn’t.

Another thing ProbioSlim is missding is any kind of added weight loss support. Most of the probiotics described as being good for weight loss (Bio X4 and the like) contian ingredients known to support weight management and fat loss. ProbioSlim is just B. coagulans, which is not a particularly effective fat burner!

In short, I would not recommend ProbioSlim to anyone. That is regardlessof whether you are looking to improve gut health, lose weight, or both!

Those of you looking to support a healthy gut microbiome should look for a high quality probiotic which provides a diverse array of probioic bacteria strains, with stated CFUs per serving. A good prebiotic is an idea solution for supporting gut health over the long term (removing the need for probiotics).

Enhancing gut health is a reliable way to promote weight loss. Probiotics sold a “weight loss probiotics” are generallyno better than normal prebiotics or probiotics at supporting weight management.

ProbioSlim Side Effects

Is ProbioSlim safe? Will it cause side effects?

Unusually for a nutritional supplement, ProbioSlim can claim to be actually GRAS (generally regarded as safe). While the FDA does not regulate nutritional supplements, the LactoSpore website contains the following information:

So according to LactoSpore’s manufacturer, Sabinsa, the FDA has no issue with their claims that LactoSpore is generally safe for human consumption.

I certainly wouldn’t expect serious side effects from consuming a reasonable amount of B. coagulans for a short period of time. As I stated earlier in the review, this bacteria is found in all manner of probiotic foods; kimchi, yogurts, and other fermented food products.

Most of us are therefore used to consuming some of this bacteria on a semi-regular basis.

The only issue is that we don’t know how much B. coagulans we get from ProbioSlim. The ProbioSlim ingredients list just shows us the milligrams of LactoSpore, when this ingredient comes in varous strengths (anywhere from 6 to 100 billion spores per gram).

It is therefore difficult to properly gauge ProbioSlim side effects.

Potential side effects from using ProbioSlim include:

Bloating
Gas
Nausea
Diarrhea
Constipation
Stomach cramps

These side effects occur when the bcteria in ProbioSlim cause rapid changes in gut microbiome composition. Stop taking probioSlim and these side effects should dissipate.

Please remember that this is not medical advice. I am not a doctor. You need to get properly medical advice from qualified doctor – idealy your regular physician – before taking any probiotics, including PriobioSlim. Do your own research carefully before taking any probiotics.

ProbioSlim review conclusion: Is it a good probiotic?

Would I recommend ProbioSlim to you guys? Is it the best probiotic for gut health and weight management?

NO!

I would not recomment ProbioSlim to anybody, regardless of whether their goal is weight loss, weight management, or supporting gut health.

As a probiotic, ProbioSlim is very limited. It contais one probiotic bacteria strain, Bacillus coagulans. Although this stain has been shown to have significant benefits in terms of gut health and digestion, a good probiotic should seek to rebalance the microbiome as a whole with the introduction of multiple strains of healthy probiotic bacteria. Relying on one strain is myopic and will invariably produce limited results.

As a weight loss supplement, ProbioSlim is woeful. A good probiotic is normally more effctive than diet pills when it comes to melting body fat. But most “weight loss probiotics” contain added ingredients to enhance and encourage fat loss; appetite suppressants, thermogenics and the like. ProbioSlim contains no such ingredients.

Overall then, I think ProbioSlim is a poor probiotic.

If you want a supplement to help promote good gut health over the long term, consider a prebiotic. If you want help fixing a serious digestion issue or help controlling appetite, a high quality probiotic is a solid option. In neither of these scenarios is ProbioSlim the best option!

J. Theorin

Johan Theorin is an author, editor, and competitive cyclist. He is the author of most of the content on this website, and he is the site editor. Johan has spent years researching joint health, sports performance and recovery. He is a leading biohacking expert and an experienced physiotherapist.