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From The October 2001 Issue of Nutrition Science News
Evidence-based Products: Probiotics
Culturelle
ABOUT THE COMPANY: ConAgra is a leading food service manufacturer and the second-largest retail food supplier in North America.
STUDY CLAIM: Culturelle Lactobacillus GG reduces the incidence of antibiotic-associated diarrhea in children treated with oral antibiotics for common childhood infections.
PUBLISHED: Vanderhoof JA, et al. Lactobacillus GG in the prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhea in children. J Pediatr 1999 Nov; 135(5):564-8.
ABSTRACT: Two hundred children ages six months to 10 years were enrolled in the study, with 188 completing all phases of the protocol. All of the children took Lactobacillus GG 10 billion colony-forming units daily or comparable placebo in a double-blind, randomized trial. The primary caregiver was questioned every three days regarding the incidence of gastrointestinal symptoms, predominantly stool frequency and consistency.
Twenty-five placebo-treated and seven LGG-treated patients had diarrhea as defined by liquid stools numbering two or greater per day. Overall, LGG significantly reduced stool frequency and increased stool consistency during antibiotic therapy by day 10 compared with placebo.
POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS: For the purpose of maintaining healthy intestinal flora, Culturelle Lactobacillus GG can be taken concurrently with antibiotic therapy, is effective for traveling, and safe for children.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
9 ConAgra Dr. - CIG-237
Omaha, NE 68102
1-888-828-4242
www.culturelle.com
CHR Hansen
ABOUT THE COMPANY: Danish pharmacist D.A. Hansen, who developed a standardized rennet for efficient cheese making, founded CHR Hansen in 1874. Today, Hansen is the world's largest supplier of cultures and enzymes to the food and dairy industries.
STUDY CLAIM: Specific probiotic strains, such as Bifidobacterium lactis Bb-12, can help control allergic reactions, especially in young children.
PUBLISHED: Isolauri E, et al. Probiotics in the management of atopic eczema. Clin Exp Allergy 2000 Nov;30(11):1604-10.
ABSTRACT: During the last two decades, the incidence of allergic diseases has increased in industrialized countries. Researchers assessed the potential of probiotics to control allergic inflammation at an early age in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.
A total of 27 infants, mean age 4.6 months, who manifested atopic eczema during exclusive breast-feeding and who had no exposure to other infants or substitute formulas, were weaned on extensively hydrolysed whey formulas supplemented with Bifidobacterium lactis Bb-12 or Lactobacillus GG (ATCC 53103), or the same formula without probiotics. Researchers measured the extent and severity of atopic eczema, the growth and nutrition of the infants, concentrations of circulating cytokines/chemolines, and soluble cell surface adhesion molecules in serum. Methylhistamine and eosinophilic protein X in urine were also determined.
The SCORAD median score, which reflects the extent and severity of atopic eczema, was 16 (range 725) during breast-feeding. After two months, patients who took probiotic-supplemented formulas experienced improved skin conditions compared with the unsupplemented group. The SCORAD median decreased in the Bifidobacterium lactis Bb-12 group to 0 (range 03.8) and in the Lactobacillus GG group decreased to 1 (range 0.018.7). The unsupplemented group's median score was 13.4 (range 4.518.2), which paralleled a reduction in the soluble CD4 concentration of serum and eosinophilic protein X in urine.
The results provide the first clinical demonstration of specific probiotic strains modifying the changes related to allergic inflammation. The data further indicate that probiotics may counteract inflammatory responses beyond the intestinal milieu. The combined effects of these probiotic strains can guide infants through the weaning period, which is when they become sensitized to newly encountered antigens.
POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS: Probiotics are another way to use functional foods to treat allergies and prevent disease. These cultures are used in many foods, including cheese, yogurt, juice drinks, and breakfast cereals. The company also manufactures microbial and yeast products for animals and pets.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
9015 W. Maple St.
P.O. Box 14428
Milwaukee, WI 53214-4298
1-800-558-0802
www.chrhansen.com
Nebraska Cultures
ABOUT THE COMPANY: For 20 years, Nebraska Cultures has custom-manufactured probiotics for domestic and international clients.
STUDY CLAIM: Laboratory research revealed that L. acidophilus DDS-1 has an acid, bile, and alkaline stability that would survive in the stomach and proliferate in the intestinal environment.
PUBLISHED: Shahani K, et al. Delineation of beneficial characteristics of effective probiotics. JANA 2001;3(2)38-43.
ABSTRACT: Researchers have studied the nutritional and therapeutic benefits of lactic cultures since 1908. Today, clinical data document that lactic cultures control gastrointestinal infections, reduce serum cholesterol, help food allergies and lactose digestion in lactose-intolerant individuals, and reduce colon cancer incidence and yeast infections by immunomodulation.
However, to be nutritionally and therapeutically beneficial to the host, lactic cultures must not only tolerate and pass through the acidic stomach (low pH) but also grow and proliferate at physiological levels of bile salts and adhere to intestinal epithelial cells. Further, they should improve mineral absorption as well as produce ß-galactosidase and vitamins. Therefore, researchers are attempting to isolate strains with the aforementioned properties.
Researchers screened different lactic cultures, primarily Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium longum, for their acid/alkaline tolerance, bile tolerance, acid production, antimicrobial property, ß-galactosidase activity, and for their ability to adhere to the intestinal mucosa. L. acidophilus tolerates the stomach environment and produced more L-lactic acid than D-lactic acid, thus reducing the possibility of developing intestinal acidosis.
POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS: These probiotic strains, available in freeze-dried capsules and powders, are intended to be taken with food to enhance digestion and food absorption. CONTACT INFORMATION:
1911 Trenton Court
Walnut Creek, CA 94596
925-935-0922
www.nebraskacultures.com
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