scFOS Seems To Reduce Childhood Diarrhea Severity

scFOS Seems To Reduce Childhood Diarrhea Severity

GOLDEN, Colo.GTC Nutrition,manufacturer of NutraFlora short-chain fructooligosaccharides (scFOS), announcedresults of a study showing scFOS can reduce the severity of symptoms related todiarrhea occurrence in children. The study, conducted at the University ofIllinois at Urbana-Champaign, involved an animal model of childhood diarrhea,which is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in infants, according to theresearchers (J Nutr, 133, 6:1845-52, 2003).

The need for prebiotic fiber and attention to digestiveproblems in children has not played a major role in the food and nutraceuticalindustry, even though more than 30 percent of pediatric visits result fromdiarrhea and constipation, said Linda Chamberlain Douglas, Ph.D., R.D.,manager of scientific affairs at GTC.

To study prebiotic effects on preventing diarrhea infection,researchers randomly assigned piglets to receive either a control formula or aformula containing one of three treatmentsmethylcellulose (MCEL), soypolysaccharides (SPS) or scFOSfor 14 days. On the seventh day, the piglets were randomly assigned to beinfected with Salmonella typhimurium or serve as non-infected controls.The bacterium was shown to cause diarrhea in controls and the MCEL group, butnot in the SPS or scFOS groups. Researchers concluded fermentable fiber enhancesintestinal function and reduces the severity of S. typhimuriuminfection-associated symptoms, and may be a cost-effective way to reduce theseverity of diarrhea in infants.

According to GTC (www.gtcnutrition.com), NutraFlora scFOS isthe only Food and Drug Administration-reviewed GRAS (generally recognized assafe) short-chain prebiotic fiber for children under the age of one.