Another good indication of how to properly store your probiotic is how it was stored when you bought it. If you found it in the refrigerated section of your local health food store, or it was shipped from the manufacturer with an ice pack, chances are, it’ll probably need to stay refrigerated. On the other hand, if your probiotics use shelf-stable technology, the label will say that, too. Many manufacturers even add some extra information about the proper way to store nonrefrigerated probiotics to extend their shelf-life. The reason some probiotics need refrigeration and others don’t mainly comes down to the fact that different strains of probiotics have different sensitivity levels, and not all strains can be freeze-dried—the process used to make them shelf-stable—successfully. Some probiotic bacteria, like Lactobacillus delbrueckii, are highly sensitive to certain processing methods1, like freeze-drying, while others, like Lactobacillus paracasei and spore-forming strains like 2Bacillus2, come out live and ready to populate your gut on the other side.* While you might assume that refrigerated probiotics contain fewer additives, this isn’t true in all cases. Pedre recommends checking your labels to make sure whatever probiotics you choose are free of additives. Refrigeration may also create a barrier to taking probiotics in the first place, says Bindiya Gandhi, M.D., an American Board Family Medicine–certified physician with training in integrative and functional medicine. For example, if you travel a lot, it can be difficult to carry around a heat-sensitive bottle of probiotics wherever you go, so you’re more likely to just leave it behind instead. When looking at a probiotic supplement, you’ll see that each one contains a specific number of organisms per capsule. For example, one probiotic may have 5 billion colony-forming units (or CFUs) per dose, while another has 25 billion CFUs. But, as Pedre points out, those numbers only represent what’s in the capsule up to their expiration. After that, the probiotic numbers go down and the supplement becomes less effective over time. While this is true no matter how you store your probiotics, the less closely you follow the storage instructions, the more quickly it happens. For example, if your probiotic calls for refrigeration but you leave it out on the counter in the middle of the summer, the heat and moisture from humidity can kill some, or all, of the bacteria, even before the expiration date. If your probiotic doesn’t have an expiration or best-by date, most supplements (including probiotics) are formulated to last at least two years beyond the manufacturing date (check the bottom of the bottle). If you like your probiotic, you’ll probably use it well before two years though. She has written twelve books and has had more than 2,000 articles published across various websites. Lindsay currently works full time as a freelance health writer. She truly believes that you can transform your life through food, proper mindset and shared experiences. That’s why it’s her goal to educate others, while also being open and vulnerable to create real connections with her clients and readers.
