A study led by Hiroshi Ohno at the RIKEN Center for Integrative Medical Sciences (IMS) recently showed that certain gut bacteria found in one-month-old infants are associated with food sensitivities and the development of food allergies, particularly to eggs, while other types of bacteria are not. The study also found factors that predicted which type of bacteria would be present in the guts of newly born babies. Together, the findings suggest that certain probiotic supplements might be a good early defense for preventing food allergies, especially for at-risk infants. The study was published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
Microbiota present in the gut soon after birth, which include bacteria, are known to help with normal development of the immune system and even protect against…