SCIENTIFIC BRIEF

The Importance of Bifidobacteria
for Children

Gastrointestinal flora play a complex and critical role in the development of healthy immune and digestive functions in children. The impact of this microbial balance is becoming better understood and short and longer term influences are more clearly coming into perspective through research. Probiotics have been shown to be both safe and beneficial in establishing balance when certain conditions compromise a child’s natural floral modulation.

A newborn is first colonized by microbes at birth. Babies naturally acquire good bacteria during the vaginal birthing process from the mother, as well as from the mother’s skin and gut. With caesarian deliveries, or with other factors in the infant’s interaction with his immediate environment, some children are lacking beneficial flora from their very beginnings. A disturbed succession of intestinal flora in early infancy has been linked to the risk of developing infectious, inflammatory and allergic diseases later in life.1

In healthy, breast-fed infants, Bifidobacteria are the predominant bacteria in the digestive tract. Bifidobacterial “dominance” is established by 6 days of age, when this group of bacteria outnumber most other species in breast-fed babies’ stomachs by a factor of 1000 to 1. This ratio persists through the first year of life until solid foods are introduced. In contrast, babies that are fed with infant formula, have only one-tenth as many Bifidobacteria in their digestive tracts as breast-fed babies, and, instead, formula-fed infants’ bowels are colonized by a complex variety of microorganisms, including potentially harmful species.2,3,4

How Breast Milk Promotes Healthy Flora
It is believed that breast milk contains several essentials—specific proteins and sugars—that act as “growth factors” to stimulate Bifidobacteria to flourish in the digestive tract of breast-fed babies. Large populations of Bifidobacteria compete with other bacteria for nutrients and space inside the intestines, and, ultimately, crowd out many unwanted bacterial types. In addition, breast feeding probably helps to eliminate unwanted bacteria in other ways, too. For example, breast milk does not neutralize stomach acid the way that cow’s milk-based formula does. By keeping the intestinal environment acidic, growth of many harmful bacteria is inhibited, and this helps to assure good digestive function. Breast-feeding is clearly nature’s way of promoting a healthy gut in infants.4

How Probiotics Can Help
For some women, breast-feeding is just not an option, yet, we’ve found out it’s still possible for formula-fed infants to obtain a healthy repertoire of gut bacteria. Experiments show that supplementing formula-fed infants with probiotics can make up for the missing components of breast milk and actually recreate a gut flora that resembles what is found in breast-fed infants. This means probiotic supplementation can substantially increase the numbers of Bifidobacteria and the acid content of formula-fed babies’ stools.5 This is why some infant formula manufacturers are now adding Bifidobacteria probiotics to their infant formulas. The best choice in a capsuled probiotic will contain Bb12 which is used in those formulas.

Why Healthy Gut Flora in Infancy is Important
Having a healthy repertoire of bacteria in the digestive tract right from birth is incredibly important, since studies have found that the organisms we acquire in early infancy stick with us for life.
The increase in allergic diseases in children in industrialized countries is impacted, among other things, to the “exaggerated hygiene” in early childhood. Insufficient exposure to microbes could promote the development of allergies. If the immune system of infants can be stimulated by the endogenous intestinal flora, or by incorporating specific probiotics, the gut microbiota could be modified to resemble that of a healthy breastfed infant.6 By counteracting deviations present in infants at risk of specific diseases, probiotics research indicates relief from several childhood ailments—colic, diarrhea, eczema, allergies and asthma.

Bifidobacteria are believed to be especially important, as they help the immune system develop appropriately. Numerous studies have found a lack of Bifidobacteria in children with food allergies.7,8,8,9,10,11,12 But, fortunately, supplementing these children with Bifidobacteria has led to resolution of allergic manifestations like eczema.13 In fact, in one study, supplementing pregnant women and their infants with a probiotic containing Bifidobacteria and other organisms actually prevented allergic eczema from developing in the babies and toddlers.14

Researchers from the University of Turku, Finland have discovered a link between levels of beneficial Bifidobacteria in a baby’s gut and obesity. The study showed babies with high levels of Bifidobacteria had a greater protection from excess weight gain in the future. This supports previous studies in adults that linked obesity with low levels of beneficial bacteria, suggesting manipulation of gut flora could effectively help in the prevention and treatment of obesity.15

Bifidobacteria Contributes to Good Digestive Health
By fermenting proteins and sugars inside the digestive tract, Bifidobacteria produce short-chain fatty acids that have several important functions. First, these short-chain fatty acids have anti-inflammatory effects. This can be beneficial when combating inflammatory bowel tendencies. Additionally, these short-chain fatty acids keep the intestinal environment slightly acidic. This plays an important role in eliminating harmful bacteria that could otherwise cause disease­—since most disease-causing microorganisms cannot survive in acidic conditions. Production of short-chain fatty acids may be the most important reason that Bifidobacteria have been found to be so useful in treating and preventing diarrhea from a number of different causes including: antibiotic-associated diarrhea, diarrhea caused by C. difficile, and diarrhea of rotavirus origin.16,17,18,19 Probably a combination of these important Bifidobacterial activities explains why Bifidobacteria have also been shown to reduce incidence of colic in infants as well as decrease sickness rates and the need for antibiotics among infants and toddlers.20

 

  1. Salminen S, Isolauri E. Functional foods forum. University of Turku, Turku, Finland, 2008, discussion 233-7.
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  3. Levy et al. Immunonutrition: the pediatric experience. Nutrition. 1998;14:641.
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