Synbiotics and Colon Cancer

BRISBANE, AustraliaA synbiotic supplementation with Bifidobacterium lactis and resistant starch, in the doses used, induced unique changes in fecal microflora but did not significantly alter any other fecal, serum, or epithelial variables (Am J Clin Nutr. 2009;90:578-586).The randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled, four-week crossover trial administered resistant starch and B.Lactis, either alone or as a combined synbiotic preparation, in 20 human volunteers.

Seventeen subjects completed the entire study. The synbiotic intervention fostered a significantly different fecal stream bacterial community than did either the prebiotic (P=0.032) or the probiotic (P=0.001) intervention alone, in part because of a greater proportion of patients harboring fecal Lachnospiraceae spp. These changes developed in the absence of any significant differences in fecal chemistry. There were no differences in epithelial kinetics.