Lactobacillus plantarum

Lactiplantibacillus plantarum · L. plantarum

Snapshot

Indications	Contraindications
Abdominal pain¹ Iron absorption² Body weight and inflammation³ Anxiety symptoms^{4, 5} Sleep disturbance⁶ Helicobacter pylori therapy tolerability⁷	Immune-compromised condition⁸ Milk allergy⁹ Soy allergy⁹

Lactobacillus plantarum (reclassified Lactiplantibacillus plantarum) is a lactic acid bacterium found in fermented foods and the human gut, and supplemental strains act by modulating gut microbiota and mucosal immune signaling¹⁰. Supplementation is used for abdominal pain and stool habits in irritable bowel syndrome, for iron absorption, and for body weight and inflammatory markers. Strain-specific products are also taken for anxiety and sleep via the gut-brain axis, and as adjuncts during Helicobacter pylori eradication therapy.

Evidence is strain-dependent. A meta-analysis reports reduced abdominal pain and lower C-reactive protein, an inflammatory marker¹. A pediatric transplant trial found one strain ineffective for preventing gastrointestinal graft-versus-host disease¹¹, and a respiratory trial found no benefit on its primary outcome¹². Products come mainly as capsules, with some tablets and powders; see Form comparison.

Health Canada lists immune-compromised conditions, including long-term corticosteroid treatment, as a reason not to use licensed products⁸. No Lactobacillus plantarum bacteremia occurred in a pediatric transplant trial¹¹.

Last updated October 16, 2026. Read how we make monographs.

In the full monograph

52 sources, 44 studies

When to useThe situations practitioners use it for, each with the reason and the study behind it.
SafetyWho should avoid it, who needs extra care, and the side effects reported in studies.
InteractionsThe medicines and supplements it interacts with, the effect of each, and what labeling says to watch.
Protocol notesThe doses used in studies, how and when they were taken, and how the forms on the market compare.
How it worksWhat it is and how it works in the body, in plain terms.
Published studiesThe studies behind each use, popular claims checked against them, and trials still under way.
Word of mouthWhat patients and practitioners report online, kept separate from the clinical evidence.
Clinical perspectiveA closing read of where the evidence is solid, where it is thin, and what has not been studied.

Snapshot

In the full monograph

Sources