For daily wellbeing - Scientific Research
'For daily wellbeing' probiotic strains show potential for Stress - October 2010 - Lactobacillus acidophilus Rosell-52 & Bifidobacterium longum Rosell-175, two of the probiotics in For daily wellbeing, were demonstrated to be beneficial in an innovative new trial linking gut health and stress levels. Published in the British Journal of Nutrition, this clinical trial found that the two probiotic strains are able to cause beneficial psychological effects in humans. 'These results provide further evidence that gut microflora play a role in stress, anxety and depression' the French scietinist reported. Volunteers were administered with either the two For daily wellbeing probiotic strains, or a placebo, every day for 30 days, and then tested for stress and anxiety levels. The probiotic group showed significant improvement in psychological distress, depression, anger-hostility and anxiety. L. acidophilus Rosell-52 was also shown to help improve sleep in elderly subjects. Evidence in this area is preliminary, yet very promising!
Source: Mr Messaoudi et al., Assessment of psychotropic-like properties of a probiotic formulation (Lactobacillus helveticus R0052 and Bifidobacterium longum R0175) in rats and human subjects. British Journal of Nutrition, 10.1017/S0007114510004319
Multi-strain probiotics reduce symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome – September 2008 – This Clinical trial by Williams E, et al. gave 52 adults two strains of Lactobacillus and two strains of Bifidobacteria for a period of 8 weeks. The study concluded that probiotic supplements made significant reductions in the severity of IBS symptoms. Those participants given probiotics reported a reduction in days with pain, and considerable improvement in quality of life and satisfaction with bowel habits.
Probiotics restore bowel flora and improve liver enzymes in alcohol-induced liver injury – December 2008 - A study on 66 Russians with alcoholic psychosis and 24 healthy controls found the alcoholic patients to have significantly less Bifidobacteria and Lactobacilli in their systems than participants without alcoholic psychosis. Giving Bifidobacterium bifidum and Lactobacillus plantarum to the alcoholic patients restored their bowel microbiota, and improved their liver health significantly more than standard therapy on its own.
For an abstract of the study, see http://www.alcoholjournal.org/article/S0741-8329(08)00301-7/abstract
Lifelong prebiotic supplementation could extend lifespan by over 30% - April 2008 - An animal study at the Université Henri Poincare Nancy I administered rats with the prebiotics inulin and oligofructose (FOS). Results demonstrated increased survival rates in rats given the prebiotics, and also lower body weight and lower cholesterol when compared to rats in the control group. Within the male rats’groups, at 18 months old all animals on prebiotics were still alive, compared to 76% of the rats not on prebiotics.
Source: British Journal of Nutrition Published online ahead of print, 11 Apr 2008, doi: 10.1017/S0007114508975607, "Effects of lifelong intervention with an oligofructose-enriched inulin in rats on general health and lifespan" Authors: P. Rozan, A. Nejdi, S. Hidalgo, J.-F. Bisson, D. Desor, M. Messaoudi
Probiotics ease stress-related gut problems - January 2008 – Leading probiotic firm, Lallemand, led a double-blind study which randomly assigned either probiotics or placebos to 75 volunteers from 18 to 60 years old. Participants who received probiotics Lactobacillus acidophilus Rosell-52 and Bifidobacterium longum Rosell-175 reported considerable reduction in abdominal pain and nausea or vomiting compared to participants in the control group. Authors of the study at the Institut Rosell commented that this probiotic supplement could act on the intestinal microflora, the epithelial barrier, and the immune system in order to improve gastrointestinal problems induced by stress.
Source: Nutrition Research (Elsevier) Volume 28, Issue 1, January 2008, Pages 1-5 "Probiotic food supplement reduces stress-induced gastrointestinal symptoms in volunteers: a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial" Authors: L. Diop, S. Guillou, H. Durand
Synbiotics (both probiotics and prebiotics) reduce risk of colon cancer - February 2007 - A large study sponsored by the EU found that a mix of both probiotics and prebiotics largely modified the composition of the colonic bacterial ecosystem, and could in this way diminish the amount of cancer-promoting bacteria. The number of Clostridium perfringens, a bacterial strain thought to convert dietary substances to carcinogenic compounds, decreased notably in participants given the synbiotic product. Lead author Joseph Rafter stated that use of synbiotics may represent a fine means of “chemoprevention of colon cancer in humans”.
Source: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition Volume 85, Pages 488-496 "Dietary synbiotics reduce cancer risk factors in polypectomized and colon cancer patients"
Role of prebiotics in reducing artery hardening & boosting heart health – January 2007 - Researchers at the Human Nutrition Research Centre in Auvergne found that mice given long-chain inulin or an oligofructose-enriched inulin showed significantly reduced levels of triacylglycerol and 30% less atherosclerotic plaque. Atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) is a major risk factor in cardiovascular disease, which causes up to 50% of deaths in Europe.
Source: M-H Rault-Nania et al., British Journal of Nutrition, Volume 96, Number 5, Pages 840-844
Clinical Research on probiotics and wellbeing
Williams E, et al (2008) Clinical trial: a multistrain probiotic preparation significantly reduces symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome in a double-blind placebo-controlled study. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. September 10 2008
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Guarner, F. & Malagelada, J. R. (2003) Gut flora in health and disease. Lancet; Vol. 8 pp. 512 – 9
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Kimoto, H. et al (2004) New Lactococcus strain with immunomodulatory activity: enhancement of Th1-type immune response. Microbiology and Immunology; Vol. 48 (2) pp.75 – 82
Kumar et al. (2005) Beneficial effects of probiotics and prebiotics on human health; Pharmazie Vol. 60 (3) pp.163 – 71
Saavedra, J. & Tschernia, A. (2002) Human studies with probiotics and prebiotics: clinical implications. British Journal of Nutrition, Volume 87, Supplement s2, 1 May 2002, pp. 241-246(6)
Gibson, G. R. et al (1995) Selective stimulation of bifidobacteria in the human colon by oligofructose and inulin. Gastroenterology. Apr;108(4):975-82.
Diop, L. et al. (2007) Probiotic food supplement reduces stress-induced gastrointestinal symptoms in volunteers: a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised trial. Nutrition Research 28.
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