Re: You cannot fix 'af' without fixing the source. Synthetic vitamins will not fix the source.

 DO NOT USE FOS!!!!!

There are people out there who say FOS is bad, and they are right, but they also chalk up all prebiotics to being FOS. They are not. INULIN is long chain and will not feed bad bacteria.

Ructooligosacharides are usually short chain and will also feed the bad bacteria. You want long chain.

The same claim has been made about both inulin and FOS:

http://www.leaflady.org/bewareFOS.htm

3. Inulin/FOS feeds only good bacteria, right? Wrong. 

Manufacturers claim that Inulin/FOS specifically feeds only good bacteria. The reality of the situation is much different. If you examine the scientific literature about Inulin/FOS, you will find that this is untrue. The best example is concerning Klebsiella. Recent studies have shown that Inulin/FOS encourages the growth of Klebsiella, a bacterium implicated in Ankylosing Spondylitis and increased intestinal permeability. Inulin/FOS may indeed promote the growth of lactobacillus bacteria, but what other potentially harmful bacteria are we feeding as well?  Furthermore, we have not even addressed the issue of yeast. Many different species of yeast are able to utilize Inulin/FOS for energy. 

But studies can be misleading.  Feeding FOS or inulin directly to a certain species such as Klebsiella in a petri dish does not mean this happens in the body.  One factor that can make a difference is the building up of the good bacteria that not only generate bacteriocides but also compete with bad bacteria for food and space.  Therefore I would like to see evidence that FOS and inulin increase the growth of any bad bacteria in the human body where beneficial bacteria are also present in proper numbers.

You can get while chicory from mountainrose herbs

Why would you recommend chicory root if you feel FOS is dangerous since FOS is a component of chicory root?