# DIY home fecal transplants are now a thing **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 27, 2014, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-home-fecal-transplants-are-now-a-thing/689350 "2014-05-27T03:57:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2014, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-home-fecal-transplants-are-now-a-thing/689350/21 "2014-05-31T22:48:41Z")
> [@carnut](#): > > But it doesn’t touch on my question about the capsules. I’m really curious about how probiotics survive the stomach’s acids. I don’t think the capsules protect the little critters. Ideally, your probiotic company will be choosing [probiotics which can survive the stomach acid](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1151822/). But don’t underestimate the ingenuity of pharmaceutical development wizards. There are indeed capsules that can survive stomach acid and release in the small intestine. [There are several different strategies they use](http://www.nutritionaloutlook.com/article/dietary-supplement-tablets-and-capsules-helping-nutrients-go-down-1-13559), from capsules which don’t dissolve quickly at a low pH but do at a neutral pH to sticking the medicine in beads inside the capsule - the capsule dissolves in the stomach, but the beads of medicine don’t break open until the small intestine - to a capsule within the capsule. ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2014, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-home-fecal-transplants-are-now-a-thing/689350/22 "2014-05-31T22:54:50Z")
This whole idea is a bunch of crap. ---
**Author:** ![Fubaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@Fubaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fubaya)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2014, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-home-fecal-transplants-are-now-a-thing/689350/23 "2014-06-01T17:53:16Z")
> [@robert\_columbia](#): > > This whole idea is a bunch of crap. Yeah, they should take the idea and stick it where the sun don’t shine! ---
**Author:** ![nevadaexile](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb8c5e/32.png) [@nevadaexile](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nevadaexile)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2014, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-home-fecal-transplants-are-now-a-thing/689350/24 "2014-06-01T22:56:51Z")
When you don’t already have hepatitis or _E. coli_…. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2014, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-home-fecal-transplants-are-now-a-thing/689350/25 "2014-06-01T23:11:03Z")
> [@nevadaexile](#): > > When you don’t already have hepatitis or _E. coli_…. If you don’t already have E. coli, you’re probably unwell or about to bleed to death. [Escherichia coli](http://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/s2008/moder_just/interaction.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2014, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-home-fecal-transplants-are-now-a-thing/689350/26 "2014-06-01T23:23:13Z")
> [@nevadaexile](#): > > When you don’t already have hepatitis or _E. coli_…. _Everybody_ who’s healthy has E. Coli in their gut. And when you’ve got C. Diff, you don’t have enough E. Coli. And the only hepatitis you’re likely to get from the colon is Hep A, which is relatively benign in 99.99% of the cases (in that it rarely kills or permanently harms you.) Besides, donors can be screened for Hep A. C’mon, be in favor of fecal transplant. Give a, oh never mind. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2014, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-home-fecal-transplants-are-now-a-thing/689350/27 "2014-06-01T23:56:53Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > C’mon, be in favor of fecal transplant. Give a, oh never mind. Is there any place I can get a donor card to carry? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![carnut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnut/32/3531_2.png) [@carnut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnut)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2014, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-home-fecal-transplants-are-now-a-thing/689350/28 "2014-06-02T00:58:55Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Ideally, your probiotic company will be choosing [probiotics which can survive the stomach acid](http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1151822/). > > But don’t underestimate the ingenuity of pharmaceutical development wizards. There are indeed capsules that can survive stomach acid and release in the small intestine. [There are several different strategies they use](http://www.nutritionaloutlook.com/article/dietary-supplement-tablets-and-capsules-helping-nutrients-go-down-1-13559), from capsules which don’t dissolve quickly at a low pH but do at a neutral pH to sticking the medicine in beads inside the capsule - the capsule dissolves in the stomach, but the beads of medicine don’t break open until the small intestine - to a capsule within the capsule. Thank you WhyNot. I’ve only ever seen one company make such a claim and it was pooh-poohed (;)) by others as having no proof. The gel capsules of the brand pushed by my co-op left me feeling like I was throwing my money away. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diy-home-fecal-transplants-are-now-a-thing/689350.md?page=1)