probiotic not dissolving

[chipie.livejournal.com]

Hi VP!

A few weeks ago I made a post asking for suggestions of probiotics which might be good for yeast prevention.  Someone suggested the Ultimate Flora Vaginal Support probiotic, which seemed good, so I bought some.

A few days ago I was feeling like I had a mild yeast infection so I decided to insert one of the capsules vaginally.  I've done it with lots of probiotics with relative success so it seemed worth a try.

I put it in at night, and the next evening I decided to put another one, but the capsule was still inside my vagina, the exact same shape as before!  So obviously I didn't put a second one in.  Then a couple of days later I got my period, and when I took out my menstrual cup later, out came the capsule.  It was empty, but the capsule itself was pretty much whole.

I was pretty disturbed.  Why isn't the capsule dissolving?  That doesn't seem right.  I'm not sure I want to be swallowing (much less inserting vaginally) a capsule that doesn't dissolve.  Any thoughts?

Thank you!

Comments

[chipie.livejournal.com]

Ah! I hadn't thought of stomach acid. That's very helpful, thank you!

[knittinggoddess.livejournal.com]

I've used the Pearl probiotics vaginally, and the capsule doesn't dissolve. However, it does deform and my vagina clearly responds to the capsule. (On the other hand, I start to smell funky after using it, so no longer do this!)

I don't know about that specific capsule, but the capsule doesn't need to dissolve for the medication to work. Narwhalhugs is right that the vagina isn't acidic enough to dissolve the glycerin or whatever the capsule is made out of. In fact, sometimes my stomach doesn't completely digest it. If you can swallow the capsule safely, you can pass it safely.

[chipie.livejournal.com]

That makes good sense, thanks a lot!

[lurkch.livejournal.com]

I googled that product and the instructions say to take one capsule daily with a light meal ... which sounds like you are supposed to take it orally.

[chipie.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it's definitely made to be taken orally. But generally, as far as I knew, probiotics are safe to use vaginally as well, even if they are not marketed that way. I sometimes use them in an attempt to stop a yeast infection from developing, and I think that's a pretty common use, at least on VP!

[fajonna.livejournal.com]

Many probiotic capsules are designed with an enteric coating which keeps it from dissolving until it reaches the intestine. Obviously, the coating would have to be strong to survive the stomach.