[Effects of Probiotics] Combination of 4 Types of Bacteria to Alleviate Antibiotic Side Effects

Hello, I am Jinny, a pharmacist.

As concerns about infection with the coronavirus have increased, criticism about excessive prescriptions of antibioticsis gaining new attention. According to OECD analysis data, Korea's average antibiotic use is 27.9 (DDD/1,000 people/day), which is significantly higher than the OECD average of 20.5. Antibiotics have significant side effects as well as their excellent effectiveness, so it is necessary to be cautious about misuse and abuse.

Antibiotics do not distinguish between beneficial bacteria and harmful bacteria, so they eliminate harmful bacteria that have invaded the body,but they also kill all beneficial bacteria necessary to maintain intestinal balance.This damaged intestinal balance causes secondary consequences such as diarrhea, abdominal pain, vomiting, and fever. This is a result of the fundamental characteristics of antibiotics.

It is commonly known that lactic acid bacteria are themain ingredient that alleviates the side effects of antibiotics. This is an effect derived from the process of beneficial bacteria improving the intestinal environment damaged by antibiotics. Just as there are different types of lactic acid bacteria, not all lactic acid bacteria will have the same effect. Therefore, efforts are being made consistently in academia to identify bacteria that are specialized for improving the side effects of antibiotics.

The paper was written based on an experiment conducted on 503 patients who used antibiotics over a 5-month period. This study is one of the largest studies on antibiotic side effects and is the only study to examine the response to lactic acid bacteria dosage. The author of the paper explained that consumption of HOWARU mixed strains reduces side effects caused by antibiotics even in low doses or is more effective in groups consuming high doses. However, the improvement effect is not necessarily proportional to the content, so it is important to consume the appropriate level, right?

Today, we briefly looked at the functions of lactic acid bacteria.

I hope you have a healthy day both physically and mentally. This was Jinny.