Here is why your child should be fed prebiotics

The word Prebiotic is often confused with Probiotics. It is important to know the difference. Probiotics are live microorganisms while Prebiotics are non-digestible fibres which promote growth of probiotics in the intestine. The common available foods which has prebiotics are banana, chicory, onion, garlic, leeks etc. Cow and buffalo milk do not have prebiotic oligosaccharides which are present in mother’s milk.
About 25 million babies are born in India every year. The infant mortality rates in India is reported to be 41 deaths per 1000 live births. There are several reasons for this high mortality rates, some being early birth, low weight at birth and exposure to infections in the environment. Infants are born with an immature immune system, the maturation of which starts only after the 1st year of birth. At such times the infant is vulnerable to infections and in certain cases death due to infections. The common infectious illnesses observed in infants and children up to 1 year of age are cold, cough, fever and diarrhea. These illnesses at times require intervention with antibiotics which further destroy good bacteria in the gut further harming the immune system.
It is now a known fact that about 70-80% of the immune cells are located in the gut, making gut the largest immune organ and the primary line of defense against pathogens. The immune system of the gut is largely regulated by ‘microbiota’ present. The gut microbiota is made up of beneficial, harmless and harmful micro-organisms which includes bacteria, fungi, and viruses. It is believed that the gut is sterile when baby is inside the womb and the bacteria colonizes human gut right during and after birth. The bifidobacterial and lactobacilli are the good bacteria which are predominant in the first few months of life. These bacteria help reduce the pH of the gut leading to killing of harmful bacteria along with promotion of growth of good bacteria. They also help improve the gut movement and prevent adhesion of pathogen to the gut wall, resulting in softer stool and strengthened immunity.

Nutrition in early years of life plays a key role in immunity. Human milk acts as a source of complete nutrition for an infant. WHO recommends exclusive breastfeeding for up to 6 months of age and to continue breastfeeding until 2 years of age and beyond with timely introduction of complementary feeds. Breast milk contains components that both actively and passively can modify the immune system of an infant. One such component is oligosaccharides. After carbohydrates (lactose) and fats, oligosaccharides are the third largest component of breast milk. The concentration of oligosaccharides in breast milk exceeds that of even proteins thereby drawing attention of scientists across the world. The average concentration of oligosaccharide in breast milk is about 10-12g/l. It is speculated that there are over 1000 oligosaccharide structures present in breast milk of which till date only about 200 structures have been identified. These oligosaccharides are Prebiotics.

The oligosaccharides in milk have a complex structure and therefore identical human milk oligosaccharide structures cannot be synthesized. However, understanding the beneficial effect of oligosaccharides on gut health in infants, researchers have tried to develop a non-human milk oligosaccharide as an alternative which still mimics the activities of the oligosaccharides in human milk. Galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS), fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS), polydextrose, inulin and their mixtures are the most common prebiotics that have been developed for the use in case of infants. Among these the most studied prebiotics are combination of Galacto-oligosaccharides and Fructo-oligosaccharides (GOS & FOS) in the ratio of 9:1. The combination of scGOS/lcFOS (9:1) resembles the oligosaccharides present in human milk. There are about 30 clinical studies and 55 publications in international journals on the beneficial effects of GOS & FOS. These studies have shown that the combination of GOS & FOS in the ratio of 9:1 has shown increase in the count of bifidobacteria and lactobacilli in the gut, reduction in incidence of respiratory infections commonly presented with cough, cold, and fever along with reduction of gut infection causing diarrhea and reduction in usage of antibiotics in early life.

-By Dr Nandan Joshi, Head, Nutrition Science & Medical Affairs

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the doctors are their independent professional judgment and we do not take any responsibility for the accuracy of their views. This should not be considered as a substitute for physician’s advice. Please consult your treating physician for more details.

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