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 .
Dietary nucleotides and fecal microbiota in formula-fed infants: a randomized controlled trial.
BACKGROUND Dietary nucleotides are nonprotein nitrogenous compounds that are thought to be important for growth , repair , and differentiation of the gastrointestinal tract . A higher nucleotide intake may also have favorable effects on the fecal microbial composition and incidence of diarrhea in infancy . However , few studies have tested this hypothesis with an experimental study design . OBJECTIVE We tested the hypothesis that nucleotide supplementation of infant formula has beneficial effects on fecal bacteriology . DESIGN Oligonucleotide probes were used to measure bacterial genus-specific 16S ribosomal RNA in stools of a subset of infants ( mean age : 20.4 wk ) who were r and omly assigned to nucleotide-supplemented ( 31 mg/L ; n = 35 ) or control formula ( n = 37 ) from birth until age 20 wk or were breastfed ( reference group ; n = 44 ) . The microbial pattern was assessed as the ratio of Bacteroides-Porphyromonas-Prevotella group ( BPP ) to Bifidobacterium species . RESULTS The ratio of BPP to Bifidobacterium spp . rRNA in infants r and omly assigned to the nucleotide-supplemented formula was lower than in infants receiving the control formula ( mean difference : -118 % ; 95 % CI : -203 % , -34 % ; P = 0.007 ) , but it did not differ in infants who were breastfed . The difference between r and omized formula-fed groups was independent of potential confounding factors ( P = 0.003 ) . CONCLUSIONS Our data support the hypothesis that nucleotide supplementation improves the composition of the gut microbiota in formula-fed infants . Because this effect could contribute to previously described benefits of nucleotide supplementation for gastrointestinal tract and immune function , these findings have important implication s for optimizing the diet of formula-fed infants
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 .