Diarrhea
• Stools (Loose)
• Acupuncture , Bilberry , Carob , Chamomile , Colostrum , Eleutherococcus , Fiber, Fructo-oligosaccharides , Folate , Food Allergen Identification and Avoidance , Goldenseal , Green Banana, Lactase, Marshmallow , Pectin, Red Raspberry , Sangre de Drago, Slippery Elm , Tormentil Root (Potentilla tormentilla), Witch Hazel , Wood Creosote, Zinc
Diarrhea, or loose bowel movements, can occur for many reasons. Food poisoning and infections are the most common causes of acute (short-lived) diarrhea. Chronic diarrhea may be caused by ongoing illnesses of the digestive tract, such as inflammatory bowel disease and irritable bowel syndrome .
Conventional treatment for diarrhea involves addressing the cause, if possible, and, in some cases, treating symptoms with medications that slow down the action of the digestive tract.
Principal Proposed Natural Treatments
Supplements called probiotics have shown considerable promise for safely preventing or treating various kinds of diarrhea. The following section summarizes much of the evidence regarding this treatment. For more information, see the full Probiotics article.
Probiotics
Certain bacteria and fungi play a helpful role in the body. For this reason, they are known collectively as probiotics (literally, "pro life"). Some of the most common include the yeast Saccharomyces boulardii and the following bacteria:
- Lactobacillus acidophilus
- L. bulgaricus
- L. reuteri (often studied in the proprietary form Lactobacillus GG )
- L. plantarum
- L. casei
- B. bifidus
- Saccharomyces salivarius
- Streptococcus thermophilus
The digestive tract is like a rain forest ecosystem, with billions of bacteria and yeasts instead of trees and frogs. Some of these internal inhabitants are more helpful to your body than others. Probiotics not only help digestive tract function, they also reduce the presence of less healthful organisms by competing with them for the limited available space. For this reason, use of probiotics can help prevent infectious diarrhea.
Antibiotics being taken to treat an infection can disturb the balance of the "inner ecosystem" by killing friendly bacteria. When this occurs, harmful bacteria and yeasts can move in and flourish, which can lead to diarrhea. Probiotic therapy may help prevent this problem. Probiotics also appear to be helpful for preventing or treating forms of diarrhea with different causes.
Traveler's Diarrhea
According to some but not all studies, it appears that regular use of various probiotics can help prevent traveler's diarrhea, an illness caused by eating contaminated food, usually in developing countries. 2-7,76
For example, one double-blind, placebo-controlled study followed 820 people traveling to southern Turkey and found that use of a probiotic called Lactobacillus GG significantly protected against intestinal infection. 53
An even larger double-blind, placebo-controlled study found benefits from using the yeast product S. boulardii . 55 This trial enrolled 3,000 Austrians traveling to a variety of countries. The greatest benefits were seen in travelers who visited North Africa and Turkey. The researchers noted that the benefit depended on consistent use of the product, and that a dosage of 1,000 mg daily was more effective than 250 mg daily.
Substances called prebiotics are thought to enhance the growth of probiotics. On this basis, a prebiotic called fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS) has been suggested for preventing traveler’s diarrhea. However, in a 244-participant, double blind study, FOS at a dose of 10 g daily offered only minimal benefits. 67
Infectious Diarrhea
Children frequently develop diarrhea caused by infectious viruses. Probiotics may help prevent or treat this condition and may also be useful for viral diarrhea in adults.
A review of the literature published in 2001 found 13 double-blind, placebo-controlled trials on the use of probiotics for acute infectious diarrhea in infants and children. Ten of these trials involved treatment, and three involved prevention. 28 Benefits have been seen in subsequent studies as well, including one that included almost 1,000 infants. 60 Overall, the evidence strongly suggests that use of probiotics can significantly reduce the severity and duration of diarrhea and perhaps help prevent it.
One double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of 269 children (ages 1 month to 3 years) with acute diarrhea found that those treated with Lactobacillus GG recovered more quickly than those given placebo. 8 The best results were seen among children with rotavirus infection. (Rotavirus can cause severe diarrhea in children.) In another double-blind, placebo-controlled study, Lactobacillus GG helped prevent diarrhea in 204 undernourished children. 9 In addition to Lactobacillus GG , the probiotics B. bifidum , S. thermophilus , L. casei , L. reuteri , S. boulardii , and Escherichia coli Nissle (a safe strain of E. coli ) have also shown promise for preventing or treating diarrhea in infants and children. 28,68-69,83,84 However, probiotic therapy is probably not helpful for acute, severe, dehydrating diarrhea. 10,80 Keep in mind that diarrhea in young children can be serious. If it persists for more than a couple of days or is extremely severe, it would be wise to contact the child’s physician.
In addition, a large (211-participant), double-blind, placebo-controlled study found that adults with infectious diarrhea can also benefit from probiotic treatment. 1
Antibiotic-related Diarrhea
The results of most (but not all) double-blind and open trials suggest that probiotics, especially S. boulardii and Lactobacillus GG , may help prevent or treat antibiotic-related diarrhea (including the most severe form, Clostridium difficle diarrhea). 11-19,61,62,70,75, 77,79,84 One study found Lactobacillus rhamnosus effective in children. 81
It is sometimes said that it is useless to begin probiotic treatment until after the antibiotics are finished. But, evidence appears to indicate that it is better to begin treatment with probiotics along with the initial use of antibiotics, then continue probiotic treatment for a week or two afterwards.
Note : Diarrhea that occurs in the context of antibiotics may be dangerous. Be sure to talk to your doctor.
Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis fall into the family of conditions known as inflammatory bowel disease. Chronic diarrhea is a common feature of these conditions.
A double-blind trial of 116 people with ulcerative colitis compared a special probiotic treatment using E. coli to a relatively low dose of the standard drug mesalazine. 26 The results suggest that this probiotic treatment might be as effective as low-dose mesalazine for controlling symptoms and maintaining remission. Evidence of benefit was seen in other trials as well. 27
Another study found S. boulardii helpful for treating diarrhea resulting from Crohn’s disease. 24 However, two studies failed to find benefit with Lactobacillus probiotics. 71-72
Other Forms of Diarrhea
Preliminary evidence suggests that probiotics may be helpful for reducing diarrhea and other gastrointestinal side effects caused by cancer treatment (radiation or chemotherapy). 20,21
One study found that S. boulardii can increase the effectiveness of standard treatment for amoebic infections. 63
Small, double-blind studies suggest S. boulardii might be helpful for treating chronic diarrhea in people with HIV and hospitalized patients who are being tube-fed. 22,23
Premature infants weighing less than 2,500 grams (5.5 pounds) are at risk for a life-threatening intestinal condition called necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC). In a study that pooled the results of 9 randomized, placebo-controlled trials involving 1,425 infants, probiotic supplementation significantly reduced the occurrence of NEC and death associated with it. 82 And, a subsequent study found similar benefits in very low birth weight infants weighing less than 1,500 grams (3.3 pounds). 87
Irritable Bowel Syndrome (Spastic Colon)
People suffering from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) experience crampy digestive pain, alternating diarrhea and constipation, and other symptoms. In some people, diarrhea predominates. Although the cause of IBS is not known, one possibility is a disturbance in healthy intestinal bacteria. Based on this theory, probiotics have been tried as a treatment for IBS with diarrhea, but the results have been inconsistent. 25
One study tested the potential effectiveness of a Traditional Chinese Herbal remedy for diarrhea-predominant IBS, but failed to find benefit. 73
Other Proposed Natural Treatments
A large (255-participant), double-blind, placebo-controlled study found that use of a product containing apple pectin combined with chamomile significantly improved symptoms of acute diarrhea in children aged 6 months to six years. 74
A small double-blind study found that an extract of tormentil root ( Potentilla tormentilla ) reduced the severity and duration of rotavirus infection in children. 64 Another study of the same herb found that it was approximately equally effective as the drug loperamide for the treatment of nonspecific diarrhea in adults. 65 The herbal extract was particularly effective for reducing symptoms of abdominal cramping.
A preliminary, double-blind study found that an extract of the Amazonian herb sangre de drago might be helpful for diarrhea associated with HIV infection . 46 The supplement medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) has also shown promise for this purpose. 47
Wheat germ might enhance the effects of standard treatments for giardiasis. 48
A double-blind clinical trial of 41 infants with diarrhea found that carob powder (at a dose of 1 g/kg daily) significantly speeded resolution of diarrhea as compared to placebo. 44
The herb Eleutherococcus might be useful in the treatment of antibiotic-associated diarrhea. 49 Brewer’s yeast, a bitter-tasting product recovered from the beer-making process, might be helpful as well. 50,51
The herb goldenseal contains berberine, a substance with antimicrobial properties. One study suggests that berberine can help in diarrhea caused by E. coli bacteria. 52 However, it is not clear that goldenseal itself would have the same effect. The herbs barberry and Oregon grape also contain berberine.
Allergy to milk and other foods may trigger diarrhea. 53 Milk can also cause diarrhea in a completely different way—through lactose intolerance . This condition is the inability to digest milk sugar, and it occurs in many adults. Use of the enzyme lactase should help. 53
Weak (and in some cases inconsistent) evidence partially supports the use of the following as treatments for various forms of diarrhea: colostrum , 29-40 a special extract of egg yolk, 78 fiber, 45folate , 41,42 and green banana. 43Zinc has been shown to be beneficial for acute diarrhea in children, the most convincing evidence coming from studies done in developing countries. This suggests that zinc is most useful for this condition in the presence of a nutritional deficiency. 85,86
Other herbs that are suggested for diarrhea but have no meaningful supporting evidence include agrimony, bilberry , blackberry leaf, marshmallow , oak bark , red raspberry , slippery elm , and witch hazel . The supplement glutamine has been advocated for chronic diarrhea, but again there is no meaningful supporting evidence.
Wood creosote is the principal ingredient in Seirogan. Seirogan is a widely used traditional herbal treatment for diarrhea. It has undergone a certain amount of safety testing and appears to be relatively safe, at least for short-term use. Efficacy, however, is unclear. 66
Acupuncture has been studied for its beneficial effects on diarrhea, but to date there is no compelling evidence for its effectiveness. 55-59
This topic is also discussed in the Homeopathy database, under the chapter on diarrhea.
References
1. Buydens P, Debeuckelaere S. Efficacy of SF 68 in the treatment of acute diarrhea. A placebo-controlled trial. Scand J Gastroenterol. 1996;31:887-891.
2. Scarpignato C, Rampal P. Prevention and treatment of traveler's diarrhea: a clinical pharmacological approach. Chemotherapy. 1995;41(suppl 1):48-81.
3. Hilton E, Kolakowski P, Singer C, et al. Efficacy of Lactobacillus GG as a diarrheal preventive in travelers. J Travel Med. 1997;4:41-43.
4. Oksanen PJ, Salminen S, Saxelin M, et al. Prevention of traveller's diarrhoea by Lactobacillus GG . Ann Med. 1990;22:53-56.
5. Kirchhelle VA, Fruhwein N, Toburen D. Treatment of persistent diarrhea with Saccharomyces boulardii . Results of a prospective study [in German; English abstract]. Fortschr Med. 1996;114:136-140.
6. Kollaritsch VH, Holst H, Grobara P, et al. Prevention of traveler's diarrhea with Saccharomyces boulardii . Results of a placebo-controlled double-blind study [translated from German]. Fortschr Med. 1993;111:152-156.
7. Elmer GW, Surawicz CM, McFarland LV. Biotherapeutic agents. A neglected modality for the treatment and prevention of selected intestinal and vaginal infections. JAMA. 1996;275:870-876.
8. Guandalini S, Pensabene L, Zikri MA, et al. Lactobacillus GG administered in oral rehydration solution to children with acute diarrhea: a multicenter European trial. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2000;30:54-60.
9. Oberhelman RA, Gilman RH, Sheen P, et al. A placebo-controlled trial of Lactobacillus GG to prevent diarrhea in undernourished Peruvian children. J Pediatr. 1999;134:15-20.
10. Costa-Ribeiro H, Ribeiro TC, Mattos AP, et al. Limitations of probiotic therapy in acute, severe dehydrating diarrhea. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr . 2003;36:112-115.
11. Colombel JF, Cortot A, Neut C, et al. Yoghurt with Bifidobacterium longum reduces erythromycin-induced gastrointestinal effects. Lancet. 1987;2:43.
12. Surawicz CM, Elmer GW, Speelman P, et al. Prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhea by Saccharomyces boulardii : a prospective study. Gastroenterology. 1989;96:981-988.
13. Surawicz CM, McFarland LV, Elmer G, et al. Treatment of recurrent Clostridium difficile colitis with vancomycin and Saccharomyces boulardii . Am J Gastroenterol. 1989;84:1285-1287.
14. McFarland LV, Surawicz CM, Greenberg RN, et al. Prevention of beta-lactam-associated diarrhea by Saccharomyces boulardii compared with placebo. Am J Gastroenterol. 1995;90:439-448.
15. Arvola T, Laiho K, Torkkeli S, et al. Prophylactic Lactobacillus GG reduces antibiotic-associated diarrhea in children with respiratory infections: a randomized study. Pediatrics. 1999;104:e64.
16. Siitonen S, Vapaatalo H, Salminen S, et al. Effect of Lactobacillus GG yoghurt in prevention of antibiotic associated diarrhoea. Ann Med. 1990;22:57-59.
17. Vanderhoof JA, Whitney DB, Antonson DL, et al. Lactobacillus GG in the prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhea in children. J Pediatr. 1999;135:564-568.
18. Thomas MR, Litin SC, Osmon DR, et al. Lack of effect of Lactobacillus GG on antibiotic-associated diarrhea: a randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Mayo Clin Proc. 2001;76:883-889.
19. Tankanow RM, Ross MB, Ertel IJ, et al. A double-blind, placebo-controlled study of the efficacy of Lactinex in the prophylaxis of amoxicillin-induced diarrhea. DICP. 1990;24:382-384.
20. Urbancsek H, Kazar T, Mezes I, et al. Results of a double-blind, randomized study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of Antibiophilus in patients with radiation-induced diarrhoea. Eur J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2001;13:391-396.
21. Unger C, Haring B, Kruse A, et al. Double-blind randomised placebo-controlled phase III study of an E. coli extract plus 5-fluorouracil versus 5-fluorouracil in patients with advanced colorectal cancer. Arzneimittelforschung. 2001;51:332-338.
22. Elmer GW, Moyer KA, Vega R, et al. Evaluation of Saccharomyces boulardii for patients with HIV-related diarrhoea and in healthy volunteers receiving antifungals. Microecol Ther. 1995;25:23-31.
23. Bleichner G, Blehaut H, Mentec H, et al. Saccharomyces boulardii prevents diarrhea in critically ill tube-fed patients. A multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Intensive Care Med. 1997;23:517-523.
24. Plein K, Hotz J. Therapeutic effects of Saccharomyces boulardii on mild residual symptoms in a stable phase of Crohn's disease with special respect to chronic diarrhea—a pilot study. Z Gastroenterol. 1993;31:129-134.
25. Madden JA, Hunter JO. A review of the role of the gut microflora in irritable bowel syndrome and the effects of probiotics. Br J Nutr. 2002;88(suppl 1):S67-S72.
26. Rembacken BJ, Snelling AM, Hawkey PM, et al. Non-pathogenic Escherichia coli versus mesalazine for the treatment of ulcerative colitis: a randomised trial. Lancet. 1999;354:635-639.
27. Faubion WA, Sandborn WJ. Probiotic therapy with E. coli for ulcerative colitis: take the good with the bad. Gastroenterology. 2000;118:630-631.
28. Szajewska H, Mrukowicz JZ. Probiotics in the treatment and prevention of acute infectious diarrhea in infants and children: a systematic review of published randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2001;33(suppl 4):S17-S25.
29. Ashraf H, Mahalanabis D, Mitra AK, et al. Hyperimmune bovine colostrum in the treatment of shigellosis in children: a double-blind, randomized, controlled trial. Acta Paediatr. 2001;90:1373-1378.
30. Casswall TH, Sarker SA, Albert MJ, et al. Treatment of Helicobacter pylori infection in infants in rural Bangladesh with oral immunoglobulins from hyperimmune bovine colostrum. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 1998;12:563-568.
31. Casswall TH, Sarker SA, Faruque SM, et al. Treatment of enterotoxigenic and enteropathogenic Escherichia coli -induced diarrhoea in children with bovine immunoglobulin milk concentrate from hyperimmunized cows: a double-blind, placebo-controlled, clinical trial. Scand J Gastroenterol. 2000;35:711-718.
32. Freedman DJ, Tacket CO, Delehanty A, et al. Milk immunoglobulin with specific activity against purified colonization factor antigens can protect against oral challenge with enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli.J Infect Dis . 1998;177:662-667.
33. Greenberg PD, Cello JP. Treatment of severe diarrhea caused by Cryptosporidium parvum with oral bovine immunoglobulin concentrate in patients with AIDS. J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr Hum Retrovirol. 1996;13:348-354.
34. Mitra AK, Mahalanabis D, Ashraf H, et al. Hyperimmune cow colostrum reduces diarrhoea due to rotavirus: a double-blind, controlled clinical trial. Acta Paediatr. 1995;84:996-1001.
35. Okhuysen PC, Chappell CL, Crabb J, et al. Prophylactic effect of bovine anti-Cryptosporidium hyperimmune colostrum immunoglobulin in healthy volunteers challenged with Cryptosporidium parvum . Clin Infect Dis. 1998;26:1324-1329.
36. Plettenberg A, Stoehr A, Stellbrink HJ, et al. A preparation from bovine colostrum in the treatment of HIV-positive patients with chronic diarrhea. Clin Investig. 1993;71:42-45.
37. Sarker SA, Casswall TH, Mahalanabis D, et al. Successful treatment of rotavirus diarrhea in children with immunoglobulin from immunized bovine colostrum. Pediatr Infect Dis J. 1998;17:1149-1154.
38. Tacket CO, Binion SB, Bostwick E, et al. Efficacy of bovine milk immunoglobulin concentrate in preventing illness after Shigella flexneri challenge. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 1992;47:276-283.
39. Tacket CO, Losonsky G, Link H, et al. Protection by milk immunoglobulin concentrate against oral challenge with enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli . N Engl J Med. 1988;318:1240-1243.
40. Ylitalo S, Uhari M, Rasi S, et al. Rotaviral antibodies in the treatment of acute rotaviral gastroenteritis. Acta Paediatr. 1998;87:264-267.
41. Ashraf H, Rahman MM, Fuchs GJ, Mahalanabis D. Folic acid in the treatment of acute watery diarrhoea in children: a double-blind, randomized, controlled trial. Acta Pædiatr. 1998;87:1113-1115.
42. Haffejee IE. Effect of oral folate on duration of acute infantile diarrhoea [letter]. Lancet. 1988;2:334-335.
43. Rabbani GH, Teka T, Zaman B, et al. Clinical studies in persistent diarrhea: dietary management with green banana or pectin in Bangladeshi children. Gastroenterology. 2001;121:554-560.
44. Loeb H, Vandenplas Y, Wursch P, Guesry P. Tannin-rich carob pod for the treatment of acute-onset diarrhea. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 1989;8:480-485.
45. Eherer AJ, Santa Ana CA, Porter J, et al. Effect of psyllium, calcium polycarbophil, and wheat bran on secretory diarrhea induced by phenolphthalein. Gastroenterology. 1993;104:1007-1012.
46. Holodniy M, Koch J, Mistal M, et al. A double blind, randomized, placebo-controlled phase II study to assess the safety and efficacy of orally administered SP-303 for the symptomatic treatment of diarrhea in patients with AIDS. Am J Gastroenterol. 1999;94:3267-3273.
47. Wanke CA, Pleskow D, Degirolami PC, et al. A medium chain triglyceride-based diet in patients with HIV and chronic diarrhea reduces diarrhea and malabsorption: a prospective, controlled trial. Nutrition. 1996;12:766-771.
48. Grant J, Mahanty S, Khadir A, et al. Wheat germ supplement reduces cyst and trophozoite passage in people with giardiasis. Am J Trop Med Hyg . 2001;65:705-710.
49. Meyer-Wegener J, Paulus M. Immune-stimulating therapy with Eleutherococcus senticosus for antibiotic-induced diarrhea [in German; English abstract]. Med Welt. 1997;48:493-496.
50. Izadnia F, Wong CT, Kocoshis SA. Brewer’s yeast and Saccharomyces boulardii both attenuate Clostridium difficile -induced colonic secretion in the rat. Dig Dis Sci. 1998;43:2055-2060.
51. Schellenberg D, Bonington A, Champion C, et al. Treatment of Clostridium difficile diarrhea with brewer’s yeast [letter]. Lancet. 1994;343:171-172.
52. Rabbani GH, Butler T, Knight J, et al. Randomized controlled trial of berberine sulfate therapy for diarrhea due to enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli and Vibrio cholerae . J Infect Dis. 1987;155:979-984.
53. James JM, Burks AW. Food-associated gastrointestinal disease. Curr Opin Pediatr. 1996;8:471-475.
54. Swagerty DL Jr, Walling AD, Klein RM. Lactose intolerance. Am Fam Physician. 2002;65:1845-1850.
55. Personal experience on acupuncture treatment of diarrhea. J Tradit Chin Med. 1990;10:163-167.
56. Feng WL. Acupuncture treatment for 30 cases of infantile chronic diarrhea. J Tradit Chin Med. 1989;9:106-107.
57. Lin Y, Zhou Z, Shen W, et al. Clinical and experimental studies on shallow needling technique for treating childhood diarrhea. J Tradit Chin Med. 1993;13:107-114.
58. Lin YC. Observation of therapeutic effects of acupuncture treatment in 170 cases of infantile diarrhea. J Tradit Chin Med. 1987;7:203-204.
59. Su Z. Acupuncture treatment of infantile diarrhea: a report of 1050 cases. J Tradit Chin Med. 1992;12:120-121.
60. Thibault H, Aubert-Jacquin C, Goulet O. Effects of long-term consumption of a fermented infant formula (with Bifidobacterium breve C50 and Streptococcus thermophilus 065) on acute diarrhea in healthy infants. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr . 2004;39:147-152.
61. Wullt M, Hagslatt ML, Odenholt I. Lactobacillus plantarum 299v for the treatment of recurrent Clostridium difficile -associated diarrhoea: a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Scand J Infect Dis . 2003;35:365-7.
62. Beniwal RS, Arena VC, Thomas L, et al. A randomized trial of yogurt for prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhea. Dig Dis Sci . 2003;48:2077-2082.
63. Mansour-Ghanaei F, Dehbashi N, Yazdanparast K, Shafaghi A. Efficacy of saccharomyces boulardii with antibiotics in acute amoebiasis. World J Gastroenterol . 2003;9:1832-1833.
64. Subbotina MD, Timchenko VN, Vorobyov MM, et al. Effect of oral administration of tormentil root extract ( Potentilla tormentilla ) on rotavirus diarrhea in children: a randomized, double blind, controlled trial. Pediatr InfectDis J . 2003;22:706-710.
65. Kuge T, Shibata T, Willett MS, et al. Multicenter, double-blind, randomized comparison of wood creosote, the principal active ingredient of Seirogan, an herbal antidiarrheal medication, and loperamide in adults with acute nonspecific diarrhea. Clin Ther . 2004;26:1644-1651.
66. Kuge T, Shibata T, Willett MS. Wood creosote, the principal active ingredient of seirogan, an herbal antidiarrheal medicine: a single-dose, dose-escalation safety and pharmacokinetic study. Pharmacotherapy . 2003;23:1391-1400.
67. Cummings JH, Christie S, Cole TJ. A study of fructo oligosaccharides in the prevention of travellers' diarrhoea. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2001;15:1139-1145
68. Kotowska M, Albrecht P, Szajewska H,et al. Saccharomyces boulardii in the prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhoea in children: a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2005;21:583-590.
69. Kurugol Z, Koturoglu G. Effects of Saccharomyces boulardii in children with acute diarrhoea. Acta Paediatr. 2005;94:44-47.
70. McFarland LV. Meta-analysis of probiotics for the prevention of antibiotic associated diarrhea and the treatment of Clostridium difficile disease. Am J Gastroenterol. 2006;101:812-822
71. Bousvaros A, Guandalini S, Baldassano RN, et al. A Randomized, Double-blind Trial of Lactobacillus GG Versus Placebo in Addition to Standard Maintenance Therapy for Children with Crohn's Disease. Inflamm Bowel Dis . 2005;11:833-839.
72. Marteau P, Lemann M, Seksik P, et al. Ineffectiveness of Lactobacillus johnsonii LA1 for prophylaxis of postoperative recurrence in Crohn's disease: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled GETAID trial. Gut. 2005 Dec 23 [Epub ahead of print].
73. Leung WK, Wu JC, Liang SM, et al. Treatment of diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome with traditional chinese herbal medicine: a randomized placebo-controlled trial. Am J Gastroenterol. 2006;101:1574-1580.
74. Becker B, Kuhn U, Hardewig-Budny B. Double-blind, randomized evaluation of clinical efficacy and tolerability of an apple pectin-chamomile extract in children with unspecific diarrhea. Arzneimittelforschung . 2006;56:387-393.
75. Szajewska H, Ruszczynski M, Radzikowski A. Probiotics in the prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhea in children: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. J Pediatr. 2006;149:367-372.
76. Briand V, Buffet P, Genty S, et al. Absence of efficacy of nonviable Lactobacillus acidophilus for the prevention of traveler's diarrhea: a randomized, double-blind, controlled study. Clin Infect Dis. 2006;43:1170-1175.
77. Wullt M, Johansson Hagslatt ML, Odenholt I, et al. Lactobacillus plantarum 299v enhances the concentrations of fecal short-chain fatty acids in patients with recurrent Clostridium difficile -associated diarrhea. Dig Dis Sci . 2007 Apr 10 [Epub ahead of print].
78. Zaman S, Mannan J, Lange S, et al. B 221, a medical food containing antisecretory factor reduces child diarrhoea: a placebo controlled trial. Acta Paediatr. 2007;96:1655-1659.
79. Beausoleil M, Fortier N, Guenette S, et al. Effect of a fermented milk combining lactobacillus acidophilus Cl1285 and lactobacillus casei in the prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhea: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Can J Gastroenterol. 2007;21:732-736.
80. Mao M, Yu T, Xiong Y, et al. Effect of a lactose-free milk formula supplemented with bifidobacteria and streptococci on the recovery from acute diarrhoea. Asia Pac J Clin Nutr. 2008;17:30-34.
81. Ruszczynski M, Radzikowski A, Szajewska H. Clinical trial: effectiveness of Lactobacillus rhamnosus (strains E/N, Oxy, and Pen) in the prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhea in children. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2008 Apr 13.
82. Alfaleh K, Bassler D. Probiotics for prevention of necrotizing enterocolitis in preterm infants. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2008;(1):CD005496.
83. Henker J, Laass MW, Blokhin BM, et al. Placebo versus probiotic Escherichia coli Nissle 1917 for treating diarrhea of greater than 4 days duration in infants and toddlers. Pediatr Infect Dis J. 2008 May 8.
84. Guandalini S. Probiotics for children with diarrhea: an update. J Clin Gastroenterol. 2008 May 23.
85. Patro B, Golicki D, Szajewska H. Meta-analysis: zinc supplementation for acute gastroenteritis in children. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2008 Jul 1. [Epub ahead of print]
86. Lazzerini M, Ronfani L. Oral zinc for treating diarrhoea in children. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2008;CD005436.
87. Lin HC, Hsu CH, Chen HL, et al. Oral probiotics prevent necrotizing enterocolitis in very low birth weight preterm infants: a multicenter, randomized, controlled trial. Pediatrics. 2008;122:693-700.
Last reviewed April 2009 by EBSCO CAM Medical Review Board
Please be aware that this information is provided to supplement the care provided by your physician. It is neither intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. CALL YOUR HEALTHCARE PROVIDER IMMEDIATELY IF YOU THINK YOU MAY HAVE A MEDICAL EMERGENCY. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider prior to starting any new treatment or with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
Copyright © 2007 EBSCO Publishing All rights reserved.