Check your subscription status, update your details and more. Probiotic cuts risk of respiratory infections in formula-fed babies Babies who are formula fed are more prone to infections, but the addition of a probiotic supplement containing sugars from breast milk slashed the risk of such infants catching respiratory viruses Formula-fed babies may benefit from a probiotic, however, further research is needed Adding a probiotic supplement to formula milk slashed rates of respiratory infections in babies who weren’t breastfed. Infections are more common in formula-fed babies, but the supplement – which contained both sugars from breast milk and the bacteria needed to ferment them – produced fatty molecules that seemed to strengthen the infants’ immune systems.
This helped them eliminate viruses that cause symptoms like sneezing and a runny nose. A high burden of early-life infections has been linked to more moderate to severe infections in later life and an increased risk of allergies. Receive a weekly dose of discovery in your inbox.
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