On the basis of this review , available scientific data suggest that the administration of currently evaluated probiotic- and /or prebiotic-supplemented formula to healthy infants does not raise safety concerns with regard to growth and adverse effects .
Infant formulae are increasingly supplemented with probiotics , prebiotics , or synbiotics despite uncertainties regarding their efficacy .
The present article , developed by the Committee on Nutrition of the European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology , Hepatology , and Nutrition , systematic ally review s published evidence related to the safety and health effects of the administration of formulae supplemented with probiotics and /or prebiotics compared with unsupplemented formulae .
Reduction of rotavirus infection in children receiving bifidobacteria-supplemented formula.
This study was conducted at Pakkred Babies Home , Bangkok , Thail and ; with the hypothesis that children receiving probiotic-supplemented milk-based formula  may be protected from developing diarrheal diseases . Salivary rotavirus-specific IgA antibody was used as an indicator of rotavirus infection . One hundred and seventy-five children , aged 6 - 36 months , were enrolled in the study . They were divided into 3 groups according to the type of formula given . There were 81 episodes of diarrhea during an 8-month study period , most of which were caused by bacterial enteropathogens . Ninety-seven pairs of salivary sample s were adequate for the analysis of rotavirus antibody . Among 23 children receiving milk-based follow-up formula and serving as control group , 30.4 per cent of them had > or = 4-fold increase in the antibody titre , indicating sub clinical rotavirus infection . The majority of children in the other 2 study groups , receiving the same formula supplemented with either Bifidobacterium Bb12 alone or together with Streptococcus thermophilus , had no significant change in the antibody titres between the two time points . The results of this study support our hypothesis that children receiving bifidobacteria-supplemented milk-based formula may be protected against symptomatic rotavirus infection
On the basis of this review , available scientific data suggest that the administration of currently evaluated probiotic- and /or prebiotic-supplemented formula to healthy infants does not raise safety concerns with regard to growth and adverse effects .
Infant formulae are increasingly supplemented with probiotics , prebiotics , or synbiotics despite uncertainties regarding their efficacy .
The present article , developed by the Committee on Nutrition of the European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology , Hepatology , and Nutrition , systematic ally review s published evidence related to the safety and health effects of the administration of formulae supplemented with probiotics and /or prebiotics compared with unsupplemented formulae .