Florastor And The Good Gut Guys: GIVEAWAY!

**Winner is tatertot 374. Congrats!!**

I'm not a big fan of medicine. I don't rush to the doctor with every sneeze and sniffle, and I don't hound the doctor for antibiotics with every cold. In fact, my two and a half year old has never been on antibiotics, and has only seen the pediatrician once outside of his normal well-checks. I'm not the crunchiest mom out there though, so I'm not always up on the latest homeopathic and all natural remedies. So when MomSelect contacted me to review Florastor Kids Probiotics, I was eager to learn more.

I've heard of probiotics for years. I even took them in my early twenties for a time. I have a friend who swears that probiotics was one of the most helpful things she did in handling her babies' colic. But that's the extent of my familiarity with them. I only know the basics; they help balance your intestinal flora. So I set off to learn more.

The Florastor website has a wealth of information. If you're interested in this product, I highly suggest you start there. The basic idea behind using probiotics is that we all have good and bad guys in our intestine. When we get sick tummies it's usually accompanied with an increase in the bad gut guys and a decrease in the good gut guys. Probiotics replace the good gut guys, and help balance things out.

Dr. James Sears, board-certified pediatrician, author and co-host of the CBS-TV show “The Doctors," agreed to a Q&A with Florastor. I'm really comforted that Dr.Sears was a part of this, because I have great trust and admiration for the entire Sears family. (as most Attached parents do!). Here's an excerpt of his discussion:

Q: Do you recommend probiotics for kids?

A: I’ve been recommending probiotics for years, and it’s now a recognized treatment for kids when they have diarrhea. When kids get diarrhea, a probiotic can help replenish the “good” bacteria that is supposed to be living in the intestine – which will improve their digestion.

Q: How do the effects of Florastor Kids differ from those of bacteria-based probiotics, such as acidophilus?

A: One of the key differences in a yeast-based probiotic, such as Florastor Kids, is that it can not be killed by antibiotics, and it, in turn, protects the body’s own flora during the course of antibiotic treatment to guard against antibiotic-associated diarrhea. Antibiotic-associated diarrhea occurs when antibiotics disturb the natural balance of “good” and “bad” microbiota in the intestinal tract, causing harmful bacteria to grow far beyond their normal numbers. The result is often frequent, watery bowel movements.

Q: How should Florastor Kids be taken?

A: Florastor Kids is a fruit-flavored powder that comes in packets. The powder can be mixed into water, milk, juice or soft foods (such as applesauce), and should be taken twice a day.

During my review period of Florastor Kids, we had no need to use the product. That's good for us, obviously! But that means I can't give you a first-hand account of the product. BUT if you're interested, I have some to give away!

**WIN IT**

1. Mom Select and Florastor have a box set aside for one of you. To enter, leave me a comment below telling me your experience with probiotics. Have you ever heard of them?. Have you used them on your kids? Do you have any "been there done that" advice to share with the rest of us? Just leave a comment!

2. Earn an extra entry by tweeting about this contest. Just include me (@give_me_a_latte), and come back here and leave a second comment letting me know you tweeted!

Comments will close at midnight, Sunday May 17. I'll choose a winner with random.org on Monday May 18 and notify them via e-mail. Winner has 48 hours to respond before I choose another.

Contest open to US Addresses only, please.