What This Baby Probiotic Is For
BioGaia Protectis Baby Drops are the baby probiotic parents reach for when a newborn cries inconsolably in the evenings and nothing seems to settle them. They carry Lactobacillus reuteri DSM 17938, five drops a day, given straight into the mouth or stirred into milk at room temperature.
That long strain name matters more than anything else about the bottle. A baby probiotic does whatever its particular strain does, and DSM 17938 is among the small number of strains studied specifically in babies. Most products on this shelf say nothing more precise than “live cultures”. This one names the exact strain, and that is the honest reason to choose it over a cheaper bottle.
Before You Buy: When Crying Needs Our Doctor
A baby who cries hard in the evenings and feeds, gains weight and settles eventually is usually a baby with colic, and colic passes. Some crying means something else, and in a small baby that is worth checking the same day rather than the next week.
Please bring your baby to our doctor, or to a hospital, rather than ordering anything, if there is a fever, if they are vomiting forcefully or bringing up green fluid, if there is blood in the stool or the nappies, if they are feeding poorly or refusing feeds, if they have stopped gaining weight, if they are floppy, very drowsy or hard to wake, if the crying is a sudden change rather than a pattern, or if they have fewer wet nappies than usual.
We say this at the top because a bottle of drops bought online at midnight is exactly how a parent ends up waiting. Our doctor would far rather see your baby and send you home reassured.
What We Are Permitted to Say About a Baby Probiotic
No health claim for any probiotic is authorised. Every one submitted has been rejected or left on hold, so nobody may tell you a probiotic relieves colic, settles a baby or builds their immunity. We hold back from telling you any of it, and that applies to every brand on every shelf in this market.
What we can tell you is the strain, how to give it, how to store it, what the research community has looked at and what it has not, and when to come in instead. For a parent deciding at eleven at night, that is more use than a promise.
How to Give the Drops
Shake the bottle before each dose. Five drops once a day is the amount, given straight into the baby’s mouth from the dropper, or onto a spoon, or into milk or food that is at room temperature.
Never into anything hot. Warm milk, hot porridge or a heated bottle kills the organisms you are paying for, and this is the single commonest way the drops get wasted. Express a little milk, put the drops in that, and give it before the rest of the feed.
Give it at the same time each day so it becomes part of a routine rather than something remembered twice a week, and carry on for as long as our doctor suggests rather than indefinitely. The drops need no refrigeration, though they should be kept cool, dry and out of direct sun, which matters in this climate.
Three Figures Missing From the Carton
The information we hold for this product leaves out three figures: the number of live organisms in a five-drop dose, the bottle volume, and therefore how many days a bottle covers. Those are exactly what a parent needs to compare one bottle against another on price.
So we have asked the supplier for all three in writing, and in the meantime come in or send us a message and our pharmacist will read the carton with you before you order. We would rather you knew what a day costs than discover it when the bottle runs out.
A Baby Probiotic Alongside Antibiotics, and Cheaper Options for the Rest of the House
If the drops are being given around a course of antibiotics, leave two hours between the antibiotic and the drops. An antibiotic given at the same time kills much of what you have just administered, and nobody mentions it.
For an older child or an adult in the family wanting the same thing, the drops are not the economical choice, and our Entero Pro liquid or HN Pro-Daily capsules cover that far more cheaply. Ask our pharmacist and we will sort out who in the house needs what.
Is This Baby Probiotic Right for Your Child?
It suits a healthy, growing baby with an evening crying pattern, whose parents want the one product on this shelf that names its strain, and who have had the worrying causes ruled out. On those terms it is the best-documented thing in this category and the strain alone justifies the price difference.
Please bring your baby to our doctor first if any of these describes them:
- A fever, forceful vomiting, green vomit, or blood in the stool or nappies. Please come in today.
- Feeding poorly, refusing feeds, fewer wet nappies, or no longer gaining weight.
- Floppy, very drowsy or hard to wake, or the crying is a sudden change rather than a pattern.
- Born prematurely, or with any heart, gut or immune condition. Live organisms in a premature or unwell baby are our doctor’s decision, never a label’s.
- A line, a drip or a feeding tube in place.
And if you are simply exhausted and unsure whether this is worth trying, come and talk to us. Colic wears parents out more than it harms babies, and sometimes the most useful thing we can give you is twenty minutes and an honest answer.
Where to Buy BioGaia Protectis Baby Drops in Kenya
Order online and we deliver countrywide, or collect from our pharmacy at Kahawa Sukari Shopping Center, Nairobi. We send orders to Nairobi and every neighbourhood around it — the CBD, Westlands, Parklands, Gigiri, Muthaiga, Runda, Rosslyn, Kitisuru, Lower Kabete, Lavington, Kileleshwa, Kilimani, Karen, Langata, South B, South C, Eastleigh, Buruburu, Donholm, Embakasi, Ngong Road, Kasarani, Roysambu, Zimmerman, Githurai, Ruaka, Banana Hill, Two Rivers, Village Market and Pride Lands — and across Kiambu, Thika, Juja, Ruiru, Kikuyu, Limuru and Ngong.
Beyond the capital we deliver to Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru, Eldoret, Nyeri, Machakos, Athi River, Kitengela, Kajiado, Naivasha, Narok, Kericho, Bomet, Kisii, Migori, Homa Bay, Siaya, Bungoma, Busia, Kakamega, Vihiga, Webuye, Kitale, Nandi Hills, Iten, Kapenguria, Embu, Meru, Chuka, Kerugoya, Murang’a, Othaya, Nyahururu, Nanyuki, Maralal, Isiolo, Marsabit, Moyale, Wajir, Mandera, Garissa, Lodwar, Kitui, Mwingi, Makueni, Emali, Kibwezi, Voi, Taveta, Wundanyi, Mariakani, Diani, Ukunda, Kilifi, Watamu, Malindi, Lamu and Hola. At five drops once a day a pack runs for a known length of time, so tell us the pack size you want and we will work out how many months that covers before you order.
Across Africa, ask us before you order. We have sent orders to Uganda, Tanzania, Somaliland and as far as Malawi, and we will quote for Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Mozambique, Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa and the rest of the continent. Tell us the destination and we will confirm any import paperwork before the parcel leaves us.
Living abroad? Order from wherever you are and we deliver to your family here in Kenya. Kenyans in the UK, the United States, Canada, South Africa and the Gulf order from us regularly for parents and relatives at home. A baby probiotic like this one taken steadily month after month does far more than a single pack, so tell us who it is for and how many months you want covered and we will set up the repeat.
Why Buy Your BioGaia Protectis Baby Drops from HealthAlone Kenya?
HealthAlone is a pharmacist-led health ecosystem licensed by the Pharmacy and Poisons Board, and our stock is original, sealed and correctly stored. Kahawa Sukari is a real counter with real pharmacists behind it.
Our pharmacists will check that nothing else is behind your baby’s crying before selling you anything, explain why warm milk wastes the drops, and read the carton with you because the dose count is nowhere in the information we hold. Our doctor is here too if you would rather have the whole question looked at properly.
It is one more step in our vision: building Africa’s most trusted health ecosystem, accessible to everyone, everywhere.
BioGaia Protectis Baby Drops: Your Questions Answered
What is in BioGaia Protectis Baby Drops?
Lactobacillus reuteri DSM 17938, a strain studied specifically in babies. No health claim for any probiotic is authorised, so we hold back from promising a result.
Why does the strain name matter?
A probiotic does whatever its particular strain does, and most products say nothing more precise than “live cultures”. DSM 17938 is named on this bottle, which is the honest reason to pick it over a cheaper one.
How do I give the drops?
Shake the bottle, then five drops once a day straight into the mouth, onto a spoon, or into milk or food at room temperature. Give it at the same time each day so it becomes routine.
Can I put them in warm milk?
No. Heat kills the organisms and this is the commonest way the drops get wasted. Express a little milk, put the drops in that at room temperature, and give it before the rest of the feed.
How many organisms are in a dose, and how long does a bottle last?
Neither figure is on the information we hold, and we would rather say so than guess. We have asked the supplier in writing. Come in and our pharmacist will read the carton with you before you order.
When should I see a doctor instead of buying drops?
Today, if your baby has a fever, is vomiting forcefully or bringing up green fluid, has blood in the stool or nappies, is feeding poorly or refusing feeds, has fewer wet nappies, is no longer gaining weight, is floppy or hard to wake, or if the crying is a sudden change rather than a pattern.
Is it suitable for a newborn?
For a healthy, growing, full-term baby, please ask our pharmacist and we will go through it with you. For a premature baby, or one with a heart, gut or immune condition, or one with a line or feeding tube, our doctor should decide rather than a label.
Do they need a fridge?
No, but keep them cool, dry and out of direct sun. Heat shortens the life of any live product and that matters more here than where it was packed.
My baby is on antibiotics. Can I give the drops too?
Leave two hours between the antibiotic and the drops, or the antibiotic kills much of what you have just given. Nobody prints that and it costs nothing.
How long should I keep giving them?
For as long as our doctor suggests rather than indefinitely. Colic passes on its own as a baby grows, and there is no reason to keep buying bottles once the evenings have settled.
Can adults or older children take them?
They can, but it is an expensive way to do it. For anyone past infancy we would point you at a capsule or a liquid instead, and our pharmacist will sort out who in the house needs what.
Will they stop my baby crying?
We are not permitted to tell you that and we will not. What we can do is make sure nothing else is going on, explain how to give the drops so they are not wasted, and be honest that colic passes whatever you do. Come and talk to us.
Where can I buy BioGaia Protectis Baby Drops in Kenya, and what does it cost?
From HealthAlone, online for delivery countrywide or over the counter at Kahawa Sukari Shopping Center, Nairobi. The current price is shown above. We deliver across Nairobi — the CBD, Westlands, Parklands, Gigiri, Muthaiga, Runda, Kitisuru, Lavington, Kilimani, Karen, Langata, South B, South C, Eastleigh, Kasarani, Roysambu, Githurai, Ruaka and Banana Hill — and to Kiambu, Thika, Juja, Ruiru, Kikuyu, Limuru, Ngong, Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru, Eldoret, Nyeri, Machakos, Kitengela, Naivasha, Narok, Kericho, Kisii, Migori, Homa Bay, Bungoma, Busia, Kakamega, Kitale, Embu, Meru, Nanyuki, Nyahururu, Isiolo, Marsabit, Wajir, Mandera, Garissa, Lodwar, Kitui, Makueni, Voi, Taveta, Mariakani, Diani, Ukunda, Kilifi, Watamu, Malindi and Lamu. Outside Kenya we have delivered to Uganda, Tanzania, Somaliland and Malawi, and we quote for Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa and the rest of Africa on request. Ask us to read the carton with you first so you know how many days a bottle covers.
