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Effect of Infant Formula Containing a Low Dose of the Probiotic Bifidobacterium lactis CNCM I-3446 on Immune and Gut

L Baglatzi1, S Gavrili1, K Stamouli1

  • 1Neonatal Department, Alexandra Hospital, University of Athens, Greece.

Clinical Medicine Insights. Pediatrics
|March 22, 2016
PubMed

Insights

Supplementing infant formula with a low dose of Bifidobacterium lactis (B. lactis) probiotic showed similar immune and gut development benefits as a regular dose or breast milk. This supports the use of lower probiotic doses in infant formula for C-section born infants.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Nutrition
  • Microbiology
  • Immunology

Background:

  • Infant formula (IF) supplementation with probiotics aims to support immune functions and gut development in infants not breast-fed.
  • The probiotic Bifidobacterium lactis CNCM I-3446 (B. lactis) is commonly used in regular doses (10^7 CFU/g).

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate if a low dose (10^4 CFU/g) of B. lactis in starter IF can achieve similar immune benefits as a regular dose.
  • To compare the effects of low-dose and regular-dose B. lactis IF with breast milk in C-section delivered infants.

Main Methods:

  • A pilot, prospective, double-blind, randomized clinical trial involving 77 infants per group receiving either low-dose or regular-dose B. lactis IF from birth to six months.
  • A reference group of 44 breast-fed infants (minimum 4 months) was included.
  • Assessments included gastrointestinal infections, immune and gut maturation, vaccination responses, and growth from birth to 12 months.

Main Results:

  • Low-dose B. lactis IF demonstrated comparable effects to regular-dose B. lactis IF and breast milk.
  • No significant differences were observed in gastrointestinal protection, immune/gut maturation, microbiota, or growth between the formula groups and the breast-fed group.

Conclusions:

  • Supplementing C-section born neonates with low-dose B. lactis starter formula may promote immune and gut maturation comparable to regular-dose B. lactis and breast milk.
  • This suggests that lower probiotic concentrations in infant formula can be effective.
Abstract

Keywords:
B. lactisc-section babiesdiarrheaimmune maturationinfant formulaprobiotic dosevaccine responses

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