A detailed clinical study recently completed in New Zealand has answered at least some of the questions surrounding the role of probiotics and their purported ability to prevent allergic diseases. It was answered with great emphasis placed on the particular strains of probiotics as well as the highly sensitive nature of the test subjects – in this case newborns born to parents with a family medical history that defines them as “high risks” for developing eczema.
The study began with scientists supplementing three groups of pregnant women (in their 35th week of pregnancy) with either the probiotic strains L. rhamnosus HN001, Bifidobacterium animalis subsp lactis HN019, or a placebo. The daily supplementation was given to the expectant mothers from the 35th week of pregnancy to 6 months after childbirth (in cases of breastfeeding), upon which supplementation was then switched to the infants and continued until they reached the age of two.
The results of this study were that the children supplemented with L. rhamnosus HN001 were approximately half as likely to develop eczema as those in either the placebo group or the Bifidobacterium animalis subsp lactis HN019 group. There were no differences noted in eczema incidences among the two latter groups.
This uniquely detailed study revealed that different strains of probiotics produce varying degrees of effectiveness on different conditions, and the scientists concluded that further such investigations are warranted.
Source: Wickens K, Black PN, Stanley TV, Mitchell E, Fitzharris P, Tannock GW, Purdie G, Crane J; Probiotic Study Group. A differential effect of 2 probiotics in the prevention of eczema and atopy: A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2008 Aug 31. [Epub ahead of print]
For more information, see Advanced Biotics.
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