Is there really something to these new probiotic blends?
N.B. The promo code in the cover image has expired, but the 20% off offer is still on (25% off with autoship option) at our Fullscript store: link to store here
I confess I was a doubter. When the whole GLP-1 craze hit, I just kept waiting for the long-term unreported, under-reported, or as yet to be discovered unwanted side effects to appear. But the craze continued. Denmark is apparently on course to become as rich (GDP per capita) as Macau or Qatar. And now a whole slew of GLP-1 acting, or at least so they say, probiotics have hit the market.
And Pendulum was first.
The company provides guidance as to what to expect (see end of this entry) and counsels folks to give the product 1-2 months for the first noticeable changes to occur. But we were cheap, and mostly curious, so bought only 1 bottle. At 1 capsule a day, that's a 1-month supply. And he lost weight! In only a few weeks! Mostly because those after dinner cravings for sweets seemed to either significantly diminish or disappear altogether.
And he asked me for another bottle. (I just placed the order.)
While we are thrilled that this appears to be working for the help he sought (losing the love handles, curbing the p.m. sweet tooth), I suspect something even cooler (& more devious) is going on; that is, total gut lining rehab!
I cannot yet prove it, but have dived headlong into the growing body of Clostridium butyricum (I'm gonna abbreviate it, as they do: CB) research literature. It's absolutely fascinating. And turns out that CB has been used in Japan, Taiwan, Korea, China for decades already. How is it that we are just hearing of it in 2024?
Stay tuned.
Pendulum's GLP-1 Probiotic Pro, the product we tried (mostly because I had been reading so much, in the PubMed type literature, on Clostridium butyricum, as well as, of course, Akkermansia) is 500M "AFUs" of Akkermansia muciniphila + Clostridium butyricum, with Bifidobacterium infantis & inulin from chicory.
(If you're a rabbit holer like me, here is a quick link to PubMed search results for search terms "Clostridium butyricum + gut." And here, PubMed search results for search terms "Akkermansia muciniphila + intestinal barrier.")
Other products in the Pendulum line include:
Pendulum Akkermansia
Akkermansia 100 Pro
Akkermansia 500 Pro
Metabolic Daily
Metabolic Daily Pro
Glucose Control Pro
And here, a nifty table with MSRP and potential savings at our Fullscript dispensary (* denotes Free Shipping). Note that MD, MDP and GCP all contain the same ingredients, just at varying amounts. We like the middling MDP-- for 1B AFUs per dose (at not to painful a price point):
1 Bottle(1-Month Supply) | Contents | At 20% Off | At 25% Off |
Metabolic Daily | 5 strains, 300M AFUs per capsule | $39.99 (13¢ per M) | $37.49 |
Metabolic Daily Pro | 5 strains*, 1B AFUs per capsule | $55.99* (5 1/2¢ per M) | $52.49* |
Glucose Control Pro (1 capsule 2x daily) | 5 strains*, 1B AFUs per (60) capsules | $156.79* (8¢ per M) | $146.99* |
GLP-1 Probiotic Pro | 3 strains*: CB, Akk, B infantis (500M AFUs per capsule) | $52.79* | $49.99* |
Akkermansia | Only* Akkermansia, 100 M AFUs | $47.99 | $44.99 |
Akkermansia 100 Pro | Only* Akkermansia, 100 M AFUs | $47.99 | $44.99 |
Akkermansia 500 Pro | Only* Akkermansia, 500 M AFUs | $59.99* | $56.24* |
*plus inulin from chicory
And from the Pendulum site (link to Pendulumlife.com):
The link between metabolism and microbiome
Research has shown that Type 2 diabetes is linked to an imbalance in the gut microbiome. Specifically, people with diabetes are shown to have low levels of Akkermansia muciniphila [truth be told, at least in my experience, about 80%, perhaps even 90%, of the adult U.S. population-- diabetic, pre-diabetic, and the rest of them test for very, very low levels of Akkermansia in their stool samples] and other probiotic strains that help digest dietary fiber to produce butyrate, a crucial short-chain fatty acid needed for balancing glucose and supporting the gut lining.
The science behind Pendulum’s newest product, Pendulum Glucose Control, has demonstrated that it helps lower A1C and manage blood sugar spikes.
Butyrate: A powerful byproduct in a balanced microbiome.
Butyrate is critically important for digestive and metabolic health. It feeds the cells in our gut and creates a favorable environment for other good bacteria to grow. More than 5,000 research studies have shown that butyrate plays several important roles in the body:
Major fuel source for cells lining the large intestine
Helping maintain the gut lining
Helps improve immunity by defending against permeability
Stimulates GLP-1, a hormone produced by the gut, which helps maintain a healthy balance between insulin and glucose levels
But, our bodies don’t produce any butyrate on their own.
So Pendulum has compiled a proprietary blend of bacterial strains that can help your body generate butyrate. To that end, Pendulum Glucose Control is the only probiotic to contain the combination of Akkermansia muciniphila, Clostridium beijerinckii, Clostridium butyricum, Bifidobacterium infantis, and Anaerobutyricum hallii that helps people maintain their own healthy microbiomes.
Here is a closer look at the powerful ingredients in Pendulum's Glucose Control Pro probiotic blend:
Akkermansia muciniphila
"The gut-lining builder"
A highly targeted strain that can only be found in Pendulum Glucose Control & Akkermansia products. People with Type 2 diabetes are shown to be deficient in Akkermansia (in all honesty, about 80%, perhaps even 90%, of the adult U.S. population-- diabetic, pre-diabetic, and the rest of them!), which can be associated with healthy weight management.
Clostridium butyricum
The digestive health & immunity booster
Naturally found in the human GI tract, this strain is named for its ability to produce high amounts of the short-chain fatty acid butyrate. It has been associated with digestion support and immune health.
Clostridium beijerinckii
"The butyrate producer"
This novel strain produces the short-chain fatty acid butyrate, which helps the body process sugar and nourish the lining of the gut.
Anaerobutyricum hallii
(The other butyrate producer)
This is another strain known to produce the short-chain fatty acid butyrate, helping the body process sugar and nourish the lining of the gut.
Bifidobacterium infantis
The digestive health booster
This heavy-hitter breaks down a range of foods and produces the intermediate molecules that are used by the three butyrate-producing strains we have. It also helps maintain a healthy GI tract and alleviates digestive issues.
Chicory inulin
The power source for our strains
A soluble fiber that can travel to the lower gut and feed our strains. We want to enhance our strains' abilities to perform their targeted functions.
No one could manufacture these novel strains—so we built our own facility
The Pendulum manufacturing facility is as unique as the probiotic strains grown within it. Why? Our strains are the heavy-hitters, the ones that live and thrive where there’s absolutely no oxygen - in your colon - and they can only exist in a comparable environment.
Anaerobic probiotics require a completely oxygen-free environment
In order to grow Akkermansia and our other strict anaerobes, we had to create our own closed-system facility to ensure the complete absence of oxygen from start to finish.
What to expect when starting a new probiotic
Spoiler alert: by month 3, you'll feel amazing!
Week 1–3
You may experience mild digestive changes. This means that the strains are settling in and is usually temporary.
Month 1–2
It usually takes around 90 days to see changes in the microbiome. However, results vary based on your gut, and you may begin to feel some benefits.
Month 3 and beyond
You should feel the full benefits: your gut microbiome is happy, and you feel healthier overall. Cheers to gut health!
Further reading
The biotherapeutic Clostridium butyricum MIYAIRI 588 strain potentiates enterotropism of Ror t Treg and PD-1 blockade efficacy (2024) Gut Microbes |
The Potential of Clostridium butyricum to Preserve Gut Health, and to Mitigate Non-AIDS Comorbidities in People Living with HIV _ Probiotics and Antimicrobial Proteins (2024) Probiotics and Antimicrobial Proteins |
The novel immunobiotic Clostridium butyricum S-45-5 displays broad-spectrum antiviral activity in vitro and in vivo by inducing immune modulation (2023) Frontiers in Immunology |
Clostridium butyricum improves the intestinal health of goats by regulating the intestinal microbial community (2022) Frontiers in Microbiology |
Effects of Clostridium butyricum Capsules Combined with Rosuvastatin on Intestinal Flora, Lipid Metabolism, Liver Function and Inflammation in NAFLD Patients (2022) Cellular and Molecular Biology |
Effect of Clostridium butyricum on Gastrointestinal Infections (2022) Biomedicines |
Effect of Additional Clostridium butyricum on the Intestinal Flora of Chronic Hepatitis B Patients Treated with Entecavir (2021) Infect Dis Ther |
Effect of Clostridium butyricum against microglia-mediated neuroinflammation in Alzheimer's disease via regulating gut microbiota and metabolites butyrate (2019) Molecular Nutrition & Food Research |
Clostridium butyricum- from beneficial to a new emerging pathogen (2016) Clin Microbiol Infect |
Neuroprotective Effects of Clostridium butyricum against Vascular Dementia in Mice via Metabolic Butyrate (2015) BioMed Research Intl (Hindawi Publishing) |
Neuroprotective Effects of Clostridium butyricum against Vascular Dementia in Mice via Metabolic Butyrate (2015) BioMed Research Intl (Hindawi Publishing) |
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