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Parents of Babies With Colic Could Benefit From Probiotic
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on Tuesday, January 30, 2007 - 08:24 PM
The constant crying of a colicky baby can make even the most calm parents feel distressed, ineffective and exhausted that nothing they do seems to help. There is no scientifically defined cause for colic, but the results of a new study, published in the January issue of Journal for the American Academy of Pediatrics, found that a daily dose of a certain probiotic helped to improve colic symptoms significantly.
Infantile colic is defined as a condition in which an otherwise healthy baby cries frequently and inconsolably for an extended period for no discernable reason. It is one of the most common problems with the first 3 months of life, affecting as many as 3% to 28% of newborn children.
The study, conducted by researchers from the University of Turin in Italy, involved 90 colicky infants of similar age, birth weight, gender and baseline crying times. Between April 2004 and May 2005, they were randomly given either a daily dose of the probiotic, lactobacillus reuteri, 30 minutes after feeding or simethicone. Parents were instructed to note each day, for 28 days, how long their infant cried.
After 7 days, the scientists reported that the average crying times of the probiotic infants was down 21 per cent, from 197 minutes a day to 159 a day, while the crying times of the simethicone group was only reduced by 10 per cent, from 197 minutes per day to 177. After 28 days, the crying times had dropped 75 per cent (51 minutes per day) for the probiotic group and only 26 per cent (145 minutes per day) for the simethicone group.
Therefore 95% of the lactobacillus reuteri treated babies achieved the reduction in crying criteria established for the study versus only 7% of the simethicone treated babies.
"Our results suggest the potential role of lactobacillus reuteri as a new therapeutic approach to infantile colic," says lead researcher, Dr. Francesco Savino (Pediatrician). "The long-time safety profile of probiotics makes them a favourable alternative to all other therapeutic options for infants with colic."
Lactobacillus reuteri is a specific probiotic that helps build a healthy balance of microflora in the intestine that hinders harmful microorganisms from multiplying.
"We hope that the positive results from this important study will encourage physicians and parents of colicky babies to feel confident in the benefits that BioGaia Drops can provide, as a natural, more effective alternative to conventional treatment," says Dr. Anne Brusby, Medical Director, Ferring Pharmaceuticals, which distributes the medication in Canada.
"Currently, these are the only probiotics available in drop form, which makes them convenient and easy to administer," Brusby explains. "The BioGaia (reuteri) drops are delivered in a 5 ml glass bottle, directly into the baby's mouth. They can be given to babies of any age - 5 drops a day - without disturbing breastfeeding. Results are seen in the first week."
BioGaia Probiotic Drops are available in pharmacies across the country without a prescription. Because BioGaia Drops need to be refrigerated, they are available behind the pharmacy counter. The cost is approximately $1 per day.
Safety studies into Lactobacillus reuteri have been conducted in healthy newborns, small children, adults and immuno-deficient adults over the past decade. In all these studies, Reuteri has proven free from side effects, even when given in doses widely exceeding the levels normally contained in Reuteri products. Almost one billion daily doses of Reuteri have been consumed all over the world since 1996.