Compared with standard formulas, those containing beneficial “probiotic” organisms seem to reduce the number and duration of diarrhea episodes in infants attending childcare centers, new research shows.

Of two types of probiotics tested - Lactobacillus reuteri and Bifidobacterium lactis - L. reuteri may be the better supplement, according to the report in the medical journal Pediatrics.

Dr. Zvi Weizman, from Soroka Medical Center in Beer-Sheva, Israel, and colleagues assessed various infectious outcomes in 201 infants randomly given formula supplemented with L. reuteri, B. lactis, or no probiotics. All of the infants were healthy and attended childcare centers in Beer-Sheva.

In addition to having fewer and shorter diarrhea episodes, infants treated with the probiotic formulas also had fewer episodes of fever. Compared with the other groups, the L. reuteri group also had significantly fewer clinic visits, childcare absences, antibiotic prescriptions, and days with fever.

“The present controlled study is the first to compare two different species of probiotic microorganisms and their efficacy in the prevention of common infectious illnesses in childcare infants,” Weizman’s team states.

“In most of the parameters studied, the differences were consistently in favor of L. reuteri,” the researchers add.

SOURCE: Pediatrics, January 2005.