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Use of probiotics to improve health continues to spread
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It has long been theorized that certain bacteria provide health benefits, and a probiotic is defined as just that, a microorganism (bacteria) with the potential to improve human health.
Although the use of probiotics is more predominant in Europe and Japan, the US consumer market is growing rapidly, according to the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM).
The Federal Drug Administration has not approved any health claims for probiotics, according to NCCAM, but they are used to relieve a variety of gastrointestinal conditions such as infectious diarrhea, diarrhea associated with using antibiotics, irritable bowel syndrome, and inflammatory bowel disease.
Recent research revealed that the use of probiotics has positively impacted various conditions, such as acne and rosacea symptoms and intestine functionality among children.
In February 2014, the American Academy of Dermatology announced that both acne and rosacea symptoms improved significantly with daily probiotic use. Probiotic masks, creams or cleansers have been introduced by some cosmeceutical manufacturers, and based on early research can benefit the skin, according to the academy statement.
Also in February 2014, researchers from Christian Medical College in Vellore, India, evaluated whether probiotics helped decrease repeated diarrheal episodes in children between 6 months and 5 years of age with rotavirus and cryptosporidial gastroenteritis. The researchers concluded that children with rotavirus who received a probiotic called Lactobacillus rhamnosus had significantly fewer diarrheal episodes compared with children who received a placebo (25% vs. 46%).
Probiotics are currently available as dietary supplements and in various dairy foods in the US.
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