The Amazing Power of Belly Bugs

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                Probiotics, known fondly in my household as belly bugs, are microorganisms that can have beneficial effects on the human body.  They are most notorious for their role in regulating the digestive system by creating a necessary balance between the beneficial microorganisms and the harmful microorganisms that inhabit the gastrointestinal tract.  Over the past few years, probiotics have been spotlighted for a lesser-known talent—immune system regulation.  Certain strains of probiotics have exhibited the ability to either upregulate or downregulate the immune response and, consequently, inflammation.
                As a result, studies involving autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA), are attempting to replicate these immune regulating results in an effort to diminish disease activity and inflammatory biomarkers.  A recent study from Iran investigated the effect of Lactobacillus casei, a microorganism commonly found in fermented dairy products, on disease activity and inflammatory biomarkers in those with RA.  Participants were randomized into two groups, the probiotic supplement group and the placebo group, where they received either L. casei capsules or maltodextrin capsules, respectively.
At the end of the eight-week study period, the probiotic group experienced a significant decrease in the number of tender or swollen joints, the visual analogue scale scores, and all proinflammatory biomarkers except one, with a significant increase in regulatory cytokines.  The placebo group had no significant changes.  As a result, researchers identified the effectiveness of L. casei as a probiotic useful for reducing inflammation, both locally and systemically, and promoting immune system regulation.  The study suggestions the use of probiotics in combination with other autoimmune regulating medications to gently return the body’s immune system to homeostasis.

Vaghef-Mehrabany, E., Alipour, B., Homayouni-Rad, A., Sharif, S., Asghari-Jafarabadi, M., & Zavvari, S. (2014). Probiotic supplementation improves inflammatory status in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Nutrition, 30(4), 430-435. doi:10.1016/j.nut.2013.09.007

LH

Comments

  1. ksu internsFebruary 5, 2017 at 4:35 PM

    This was an overall excellent post. The information was trendy, as well as eloquently written. I decided to respond to this post because of all of the publicity probiotics have been receiving in recent years. I had heard of all of the benefits that probiotics have on the digestive system but was unaware of the immune/inflammatory effects. I was impressed that one lactobacillus casei colony could have a systemic effect on the whole body. I hope that research continues to be funded for probiotics and inflammatory diseases.

    TR

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