Probiotics for Common Cold Prevention

New evidence suggests that Lactobacillus probiotics may help prevent the common cold.

Probiotics are healthy bacteria in the gut. They help the body maintain a healthy intestinal tract and assist with digestion. They are thought to work by colonizing the small intestine and crowding out disease-causing organisms, thereby restoring proper balance to the intestinal flora.

In the recent study, 272 healthy adults were randomly assigned to take probiotic supplements or placebo daily for 12 weeks.

According to the authors, people in the probiotics group were less likely to develop the common cold than people in the control group. Also, among those who did develops colds, people who took probiotics experienced significantly fewer days with symptoms and less severe symptoms.

Earlier studies have suggested that probiotic bacteria may stimulate the body's immune system. They may also aid in several gastrointestinal illnesses such as inflammatory bowel diseases, antibiotic-related diarrhea, Clostridium difficile toxin-induced colitis, infectious diarrhea, hepatic encephalopathy, irritable bowel syndrome and allergies.

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References

Berggren A, Lazou Ahrén I, Larsson N, et al. Randomised, double-blind and placebo-controlled study using new probiotic lactobacilli for strengthening the body immune defence against viral infections. Eur J Nutr. 2010 Aug 28. View Abstract
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