No statistically significant subgroup differences were found according to infant risk of allergy or type of infant feed .
There is some evidence that a prebiotic supplement added to infant feeds may prevent eczema .
It is unclear whether the use of prebiotic should be restricted to infants at high risk of allergy or may have an effect in low risk population s ; or whether it may have an effect on other allergic diseases including asthma
BACKGROUND Prebiotics ( commonly oligosaccharides ) added to infant feeds have the potential to prevent sensitisation of infants to dietary allergens .
OBJECTIVES To determine the effect of prebiotic given to infants for the prevention of allergy .
Effect of a whey-predominant starter formula containing LCPUFAs and oligosaccharides (FOS/GOS) on gastrointestinal comfort in infants.
Development of new infant formulas aims to replicate the benefits of breast milk . One benefit of breast milk over infant formulas is greater gastrointestinal comfort . We compared indicators of gastrointestinal comfort in infants fed a whey-predominant formula containing long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids , galacto-oligo-saccharides and fructo-oligosaccharides , and infants fed a control casein-predominant formula without additional ingredients . The single-centre , prospect i ve , double-blind , controlled trial r and omly assigned healthy , full-term infants ( n=144 ) to receive exclusively either experimental or control formula from 30 days to 4 months of age . A group of exclusively breast-fed infants served as reference ( n=80 ) . At 1 , 2 , 3 , and 4 months , infants ' growth parameters were measured and their health assessed . Parents recorded frequency and physical characteristics of infants ' stool , frequency of regurgitation , vomiting , crying and colic . At 2-months , gastric emptying ( ultrasound ) and intestinal transit time ( H2 breath test ) were measured , and stool sample s collected for bacterial analysis . Compared to the control ( n=69 ) , fewer of the experimental group ( n=67 ) had hard stools ( 0.7 vs 7.5 % , p<0.001 ) and more had soft stools ( 90.8 vs 82.3 % , p<0.05 ) . Also compared to the control , the experimental group 's stool microbiota composition ( mean % bifidobacteria : 78.1 ( experimental , n=17 ) , 63.7 ( control , n=16 ) , 74.3 ( breast-fed , n=20 ) , gastric transit times ( 59.6 ( experimental , n=53 ) , 61.4 ( control , n=62 ) , 55.9 ( breast-fed , n=67 ) minutes ) and intestinal transit times ( data not shown ) were closer to that of the breast-fed group . Growth parameter values were similar for all groups . The data suggest that , in infants , the prebiotic-containing whey-based formula provides superior gastrointestinal comfort than a control formula
No statistically significant subgroup differences were found according to infant risk of allergy or type of infant feed .
There is some evidence that a prebiotic supplement added to infant feeds may prevent eczema .
It is unclear whether the use of prebiotic should be restricted to infants at high risk of allergy or may have an effect in low risk population s ; or whether it may have an effect on other allergic diseases including asthma
BACKGROUND Prebiotics ( commonly oligosaccharides ) added to infant feeds have the potential to prevent sensitisation of infants to dietary allergens .
OBJECTIVES To determine the effect of prebiotic given to infants for the prevention of allergy .