Supplements containing bacteria commonly found in yogurt can help shorten bouts of diarrhea in children by nearly a day.
Researchers reviewed nine international studies that examined the effectiveness of a type of bacteria known as Lactobacillus for the treatment of diarrhea in children, most of whom were younger than age 3 and were hospitalized at the time.
The Lactobacillus was generally given as a supplement, either in capsule form or mixed into a rehydration drink.
The researchers found that supplemental Lactobacillus shortened the duration of diarrhea by two thirds of a day, when compared with an inactive placebo treatment.
What makes this treatment so attractive is that it has little downside for its potential benefit.
Children with diarrhea should see a doctor if they have loose stools for more than 5 days, the stools contain blood or mucus, or the children show signs of dehydration such as dry mouth or infrequent urination.
Pediatrics April 2002;309:678-684
This is not earth shattering news. Most of you probably already recognize that good bacteria (probiotics) are profoundly beneficial for most cases of diarrhea.
The researcher in the above study however was relatively clueless about its true effectiveness. His study only showed a reduction of the diarrhea by one day.
This is related to the fact that the probiotic used in their study was relatively low dose and given incorrectly.
Probiotics can be given every 30 minutes for diarrhea. My experience is that this generally resolves the problem in a matter of hours, and most always within one day.
One should use a relatively high potency strain of at least 5-10 billion units, preferably more.
When the diarrhea fails to resolve, as the article states, this can be a very serious problem, and the person should be medically evaluated as the infection may require antibiotics or IV rehydration therapy.
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