Stomach Ulcers

A real trial, with a striking result

Stomach ulcers, also called peptic ulcers, are most often caused by H. pylori infection or long-term use of anti-inflammatory painkillers. In a randomised, placebo-controlled trial of 144 patients with confirmed H. pylori-related ulcers, adding a probiotic to the standard antibiotic treatment raised the ulcer healing rate from 60.0% with placebo to 92.3% with probiotics. The infection eradication rate also rose, from 67.6% to 82.2%.

Source: Efficacy of Probiotics as Adjuvant to the Standard Triple Therapy for the Treatment of Helicobacter Pylori-Associated Peptic Ulcer Disease

Faster symptom relief too

In that same trial, patients taking probiotics alongside their antibiotics reported early relief from stomach pain far more often than those on placebo, 42.3% versus 15.1%. A separate laboratory review found that probiotic bacteria can directly interfere with H. pylori's ability to survive in the stomach, competing for attachment sites and producing compounds that suppress the bacterium.

It's worth being clear about what a probiotic is doing here. Taking a probiotic only introduces more bacteria into the gut. It doesn't guarantee they'll thrive once they're there. Newly introduced microbes still need fibre and plant compounds to feed on afterward, or they won't establish themselves and will simply die back out. Think of it like restocking a zoo: bringing in new animals doesn't help if there's no ongoing food budget to keep them fed. A probiotic strain works alongside diet, not instead of it, while the antibiotics do the main work of clearing the infection.

Source: Probiotics in Helicobacter pylori-induced peptic ulcer disease

The finding holds up at a larger scale too

This isn't just one small trial. A 2024 network meta-analysis pooled 91 randomised controlled trials, covering 13,680 patients in total. It found that adding probiotics to standard treatment raised the H. pylori eradication rate from 62.4% to 78.8% by intention-to-treat analysis, a consistent benefit across a much larger and more varied group of patients and probiotic strains than the single trial above. An earlier, smaller meta-analysis of 21 trials found a related benefit too: patients taking probiotics alongside standard treatment had significantly fewer antibiotic-related side effects, such as nausea, diarrhoea, and taste disturbance, than those on standard treatment alone.

Source: Efficacy of probiotics regimens for Helicobacter pylori eradication: A systematic review, pairwise, and network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Source: Efficacy and safety of probiotics as adjuvant agents for Helicobacter pylori infection: A meta-analysis

Why standard treatment alone is struggling

H. pylori is becoming more resistant to the antibiotics used to treat it, and eradication rates with standard treatment alone have fallen from around 90% to closer to 70% in recent years. This is a large part of why researchers are looking at probiotics as a genuine addition to treatment, not a replacement for it, rather than just a general wellness idea.

What this means for you

Stomach ulcers need a doctor's diagnosis, usually endoscopy or a breath test, and a full course of the prescribed treatment, since untreated ulcers can bleed or perforate. Sudden severe abdominal pain, vomiting blood, or black, tarry stools need urgent medical attention. If a doctor confirms H. pylori, it's worth asking whether a specific probiotic strain alongside treatment is appropriate, given the trial and meta-analysis data above. That's the same idea behind GutLab, everyday gut health starts with regularly feeding the microbiome a broad range of plant-rich ingredients.