We have all heard of probiotics, those “nice” bacteria found in yogurt and other dairy products that help to re-establish the intestinal flora. Over the past several years, probiotics have been tested in treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) with varying degrees of success, often due to inappropriate use and gaps in our knowledge of such organisms. The latter are capable of ingesting sugars that humans cannot digest, referred to as “prebiotics”. The association of a probiotic with one of these food types enables it to develop in the intestine and to form synbiotics, which create synergy between the probiotic and the prebiotic. These synbiotics have only been very rarely tested in the treatment of IBD. A recent Scottish study evaluated the therapeutic potential of a synbiotic among 35 patients with active Crohn’s disease and compared it to a placebo. This very inexpensive treatment, with few undesirable effects, led to clear-cut improvement of the disease within 6 months.

This preliminary trial is encouraging and warrants further confirmation on a larger scale.

Reference:

Steed H, Macfarlane GT, Blackett KL, Bahrami B, Reynolds N, Walsh SV, Cummings JH, Macfarlane S. Clinical trial: the microbiological and immunological effects of synbiotic consumption - a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled study in active Crohn's disease. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2010 Oct;32(7):872-83.