Probiotics could reduce asthma and eczema in children.(International Pages)(Brief Article)

Infants at high risk of atopic disease - including eczema, asthma, and rhinitis - could benefit from probiotic treatment using microbes which colonise the gut, according to a study in The Lancet.

The theory is that good hygiene is depriving newborn babies of getting the kick-start to their immune systems via the gut that they used to get in days of old. `Friendly' microbes introduced into the gut in probiotic drinks can colonise the gut, strengthen the gut wall and prod the immune system into action.

Probiotics are cultures of potentially beneficial bacteria of the healthy gut microflora.

Researchers at Turku University Central Hospital, Finland, did a randomised placebo-controlled trial to assess the effect on atopic disease of Lactobacillus GG (a probiotic which is safe at an early age and effective in the treatment of allergic inflammation and food allergy).

Lactobacillus GG or placebo was given prenatally to mothers who themselves suffered from atopic eczema, allergic rhinitis or asthma, or they had at least one close relative with the condition.

After the ...