It is also linked to the recently published WAO guidelines ( 3 ) which are partially conflicting with the previous conclusion because it suggests that ‘ using probiotics in women who breastfeed infants at high risk of developing allergy , because considering all critical outcomes , there is a net benefit result ing primarily from prevention of eczema ( conditional recommendation , very low quality evidence ) ’ .
Probiotics during pregnancy and breast-feeding might confer immunomodulatory protection against atopic disease in the infant.
The prevalence of atopic diseases is increasing throughout the Western world , and means of primary prevention are needed to reverse this trend . The role of breast-feeding , the best source of infant nutrition , in protection against atopic disease remains elusive . In this double-blinded , placebo-controlled study of 62 mother-infant pairs , it is shown that administering probiotics to the pregnant and lactating mother increased the immunoprotective potential of breast milk , as assessed by the amount of anti-inflammatory transforming growth factor beta2 ( TGF-beta2 ) in the milk ( 2885 pg/mL [ 95 % CI , 1624 - 4146 ] in mothers receiving probiotics vs 1340 pg/mL [ 95 % CI , 978 - 1702 ] in mothers receiving placebo ; P = .018 ) . The risk of developing atopic eczema during the first 2 years of life in infants whose mothers received  probiotics  was significantly reduced in comparison with that in infants whose mothers received placebo ( 15 % and 47 % , respectively ; relative risk , 0.32 [ 95 % CI , 0.12 - 0.85 ] ; P = .0098 ) .  Maternal atopy was a clear risk factor for atopic eczema in the infant . The infants most likely to benefit from maternal probiotic supplementation were those with an elevated cord blood IgE concentration . Administering probiotics during pregnancy and breast-feeding thus offers a safe and effective mode of promoting the immunoprotective potential of breast-feeding and provides protection against atopic eczema during the first 2 years of life
It is also linked to the recently published WAO guidelines ( 3 ) which are partially conflicting with the previous conclusion because it suggests that ‘ using probiotics in women who breastfeed infants at high risk of developing allergy , because considering all critical outcomes , there is a net benefit result ing primarily from prevention of eczema ( conditional recommendation , very low quality evidence ) ’ .