Probiotics question?

Well, I think you're doing the right thing already and I'm not sure there's much I can add.

You're right, though--I think you reach a point where they're no longer really useful unless something new upsets the balance. What I did with my son was keep him on them until, like your son, he showed signs of improvement and now I just give him one every few days. I don't worry too much about sticking to a schedule.

A lot of things can affect your son's bowel health--medications, diet, etc so you may never see a *permanent* improvement. I'd definately think of putting him back on them (temporarily) if he runs a fever, goes through a "picky eating" stage, etc. (But you've probably already thought of that, right?)

Brava to you for being a mom who stays on top of things!

You should know when he's had enough when he feels better. Five to seven days of treatment should be enough to restore normal flora. If you take him off it and he becomes irregular again, try it again a little longer. If it comes back again after that, try to find the reason for it. The irregularity may be caused by another problem and treating that may help. Also, yogurt that says "with active cultures" has the same stuff in it as probiotics and may be cheaper.

As noted with the others, start with at least a week on the probiotics to restore the normal bacteria. After that you can stop but bring them back if he exhibits a regression. If he is ever on antibiotics, definitely get him on the probiotics while on the antibiotics and a couple of weeks after to maintain and then restore the bacteria.