Frequently asked questions

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You can easily pay for your microbiome analysis through your Microbiome Center account. As soon as your analysis is ready, you will be notified and you can complete the payment online.

Is online payment not possible? Then you can also transfer the amount manually. Please note that the processing of a manual payment may take additional time.

Bank details

IBAN: NL28INGB0008229093
BIC/SWIFT: INGBNL2A
In the name of: Microbiome Center

Always state your invoice number with your payment.

Usually not. In some cases, (part of) the costs are reimbursed from a supplementary health insurance. This differs per health insurer and policy.

Keep in mind:

• Many supplementary insurance policies offer reimbursement for certain alternative or complementary treatment methods.
• The amount of the reimbursement differs per policy.
• Supervision by a registered doctor is often a condition.
• Medicines and supplements are usually not reimbursed.

Do you have a suitable supplementary insurance and has your reimbursement budget not yet been used? Then it is possible that costs for a consultation and a stool analysis will be (partially) reimbursed. Medicine costs are usually not included.

Do you want to know what you are entitled to? Then contact your health insurer. Keep your policy number at hand so that they can check which reimbursement applies to your situation.

In some cases, you may be able to declare non-reimbursed healthcare costs incurred on the advice of a registered doctor on your tax return. Ask your practitioner or tax advisor about this.

Yes, that is possible. We can ship the test kit to most countries. Any additional shipping costs are at your own expense.

Sending the sample back to the laboratory is different for each country. In the manual that you receive with the test kit, you can read exactly which steps to follow.

For shipments from abroad, the following usually applies:

• Pack the sample according to the instructions provided.
• Send the sample to the specified laboratory address as soon as possible.
• Use an express service, such as DHL or UPS.
• The return shipping costs are at your own expense.

Are you unsure whether shipping from your country is possible? Please feel free to contact us.

There is currently no evidence that My Own Blend is unsafe during pregnancy or breastfeeding. At the same time, the use of personalized microbiome therapy in these situations has not yet been sufficiently studied.

Therefore, we cannot make any claims about its safety or effectiveness during pregnancy or breastfeeding. Are you pregnant, breastfeeding or do you want to get pregnant? Always discuss this with your practitioner before you start or continue treatment.

The minimum shelf life of My Own Blend is 4 months. This date is stated on the label of your jar.

After this date, the product usually does not spoil immediately. However, the effect of the probiotic bacteria can gradually decrease, so that the effect may be less strong.

How long My Own Blend remains optimally effective depends, among other things, on the composition and how the product is stored. A tightly sealed jar will typically remain effective longer than one that is opened regularly.

No. Microbiome Center does not perform fecal transplants.

A faecal transplant is a specialised medical treatment that is only used in limited situations in the Netherlands. This treatment is not part of the care offered by Microbiome Center.

A standard probiotic contains the same composition for everyone. A personal microbiome treatment looks at your analysis, complaints and medical situation.

Based on this, your practitioner can prescribe a treatment that is specially formulated for you by a pharmacist. Bacterial strains and ingredients can also be used that are not freely available and can sometimes only be prescribed on prescription.

Although individual supplements may seem cheaper at first glance, a quality prebiotic or probiotic often costs €30 to €60 per month. To achieve a similar dosage or combination, 3 to 4 products are quickly needed. The total costs can therefore amount to between € 180 and € 480 over a treatment period of 2 months. The cost of a personal microbiome analysis (MyOwnBlend) is € 275 for 2 months.

As a result, a personal microbiome treatment cannot be compared well with a standard supplement from the store.

The costs of course depend on your treatment, because it is tailor-made for you as an individual.

To give you an impression:

• Microbiome analysis: €236 including VAT (excluding shipping costs)
• Gluten intolerance analysis (optional): €34 including VAT
• My Own Blend: €275 for 2 months, including VAT (excluding shipping costs)
• Consultation: varies per practitioner, from €77

If you receive the treatment from your GP or from a specialist to which your GP has referred you, there are usually no further consultation costs. There may be if you go to a fairly established doctor. You can check this with your practitioner in advance.

When you start taking prebiotics and/or probiotics, it can happen that your symptoms temporarily increase. For example, you may experience bloating, flatulence, or mild abdominal cramps.

This does not automatically mean that something is wrong. Changes in the microbiome can temporarily cause additional symptoms in the first days or weeks. These complaints usually subside on their own.

Do the symptoms persist or are you worried? Then contact your practitioner. Sometimes it can help to build up the dosage more slowly or to adjust it to your situation.

Yes. A prescription for two months per day is usually cheaper than a prescription for one month.

Because each composition is unique, each recipe is prepared separately and not delivered from stock.

With a new or follow-up recipe, the preparation and quality checks are carried out again. As a result, the cost of a follow-up prescription is usually comparable to that of the first prescription.

Yes, that is sometimes possible.

If you have already had a microbiome analysis performed by a reliable laboratory, it may contain enough information to start treatment.

The suitability of an existing analysis depends on the quality of the analysis and the information available. In some cases, additional diagnostics are needed.

Your practitioner can assess whether an existing analysis is useful for your situation.

Typically, MyOwnBlend is prescribed for a period of 2 months. During this period, you and your practitioner will assess how the treatment is progressing and whether further guidance is needed.

How quickly changes are noticeable varies from person to person. Some people notice a difference within a few weeks, while for others it takes more time.

For the best possible result, it is important to also pay attention to nutrition and lifestyle. Your practitioner can advise you on this.

Whether follow-up treatment is necessary depends on your situation and will be discussed with your practitioner.

MyOwnBlend is a personal microbiome treatment that is specially formulated for you by a pharmacist based on the treatment advice of your practitioner.

Treatment may include a combination of bacterial strains, prebiotics, and other supporting ingredients. The exact composition is tailored to your analysis, complaints and medical situation.

An important difference with standard supplements is that MyOwnBlend is formulated on prescription. As a result, ingredients can also be used that are not always freely available and the dosage can be tailored to your personal situation.

Carefully selected and high-quality ingredients are used for the composition. In addition, the treatment is continuously developed on the basis of new scientific insights and practical experience.

Each composition is individually prepared and checked by the pharmacy. Because every treatment is tailor-made, the content of MyOwnBlend differs from person to person.

The dosage of MyOwnBlend is tailored to your personal situation and the chosen composition.

Depending on the treatment advice, doses of tens of billions of bacteria are often applied per day. This is not only about the quantity, but also about the combination of bacterial strains and the mutual balance.

As a result, the dosage of MyOwnBlend is often not directly comparable to that of standard supplements.

Yes, you can. Standard store-bought probiotics can be a valuable addition for many people. However, the question is whether they fit your specific situation.

Not only the bacterial species is important, but also the bacterial strain. Different strains within the same species can have different properties and therefore give a different effect.

For example, Lactiplantibacillus plantarum WCFS1 and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum KLH1 belong to the same bacterial species, but they are different strains with different properties.

When a practitioner chooses a specific strain of bacteria, this is done on the basis of your analysis, complaints and medical situation. Therefore, you cannot automatically assume that another strain of the same species will have the same effect.

In addition, within a personal microbiome treatment, bacterial strains and ingredients can also be used that are not or only only to a limited extent available through stores or webshops.

The same type of evidence is not yet available for the effect of probiotics as we know from medicines such as antibiotics. After all, a bacterium is not a medicine, but a living organism that reacts to its environment. That environment differs from person to person.

Research into individual effects and personal treatments is therefore complex. At the same time, scientific knowledge about the microbiome is growing rapidly. More and more bacterial strains are known about their functions and under what conditions they can contribute to a therapeutic effect.

The application of this knowledge still differs between countries, healthcare institutions and practitioners. In some countries, personalized microbiome treatments have been used for some time, while this approach is still relatively new in the Netherlands.

That is one of the reasons why Microbiome Center works with tailor-made treatments. The affiliated practitioners not only look at general guidelines, but also at your personal situation, complaints and examination results. Based on this, they will assess which treatment may be appropriate for you.

That depends on your situation. Each strain of bacteria has specific properties and applications. Therefore, what works for one person may not automatically work for someone else.

In addition, everyone has a unique microbiome. That is why it is important that probiotics match your symptoms, medical situation and intestinal flora. The chance that a standard product contains exactly the combination that is most suitable for you is not always great.

It is also good to realize that the term probiotics is just as broad as the term medicines. If one headache medicine doesn't work, it doesn't mean all headache medicines don't work. In the same way, different probiotics can have very different effects.

A microbiome analysis can help you gain a better understanding of your situation. Based on this, your practitioner can assess which bacterial strains and ingredients may suit you best.

Microbiome Center works together with a network of practitioners who have experience with personalized microbiome therapy.

Do you already have a practitioner? Then you can see together whether treatment via Microbiome Center is appropriate.

Don't have a practitioner yet? Then we can put you in touch with a suitable practitioner from our network. We take into account your situation and the availability of the practitioner. You can indicate this when you request an analysis. We will then contact you to discuss the possibilities.

Would you like to know more about the possibilities first? Then you can also request a no-obligation introductory meeting. We are happy to answer your questions and help you choose a suitable follow-up process.

The bacteria in MyOwnBlend are freeze-dried at minus 180 degrees Celsius. This ensures they can be stored well. To have an effect in the body, they must first reabsorb moisture. This works best with pure water. A bacterium comes back to life after soaking up water, especially if you let it sit for fifteen minutes after dissolving. The bacterium is then also best resistant to the challenges it encounters in your gastrointestinal tract (stomach acid, pancreatic enzymes, bile acid, other microorganisms, etc.).

Bij gebruik van capsules komen bacteriën in gevriesdroogde en inactieve toestand in uw maagdarmkanaal terecht. Daar hebben ze geen schoon water om zich vol te zuigen en weer tot leven te komen, maar moeten ze het doen met maagzuur of darmsappen en veel bacteriën overleven dat niet. Dat geldt ook voor maagresistente capsules (enteric gecoate capsules) die openen in de dunne darm. Ook daar hebben de gevriesdroogde bacteriën geen puur water tot hun beschikking, maar darmsappen waarin allerlei agressieve stoffen zitten (zoals pancreasenzymen of galzuren). Ook zijn ze gedurende het kwartier dat ze ‘ontwaken’, kwetsbaar voor andere micro-organismen die in de dunne darm leven.

For these reasons, MyOwnBlend is supplied in powder form, so you can first give the powder containing the bacteria plenty of time in a glass of water to 'drink' and become active again. For most strains used in MyOwnBlend, research shows that they have excellent gastrointestinal survival when used in this manner.