Probiotics Cut Allergy Symptoms

Probiotics are alleged to deliver all kind of health benefits, and, especially now that they are widely and wildly marketed, it’s hard to separate faction from fiction. Now come researchers from the University of Florida who have no ostensible reason to jack up the powers of probiotics, and who claim that the probiotic combination of lactobacilli and bifidobacteria, sold as Kyo-Dophilus in stores, can ease the discomfort from some allergies. A U of Florida news release reports that researchers enrolled 173 healthy adults who said they suffered seasonal allergies and randomly split them into two groups: Some took the combination probiotic; others took a placebo. Each week during the eight-week experiment, participants responded to an online survey to convey their discomfort level. That was the easy part. Scientists also analyzed DNA from participants’ stool samples to determine how their bacteria changed, because probiotics aim to deliver good bacteria to the human’s intestinal system. The DNA test confirmed who was taking the probiotic, and the survey answers showed that those people who took the probiotic suffered fewer allergy-related nose symptoms than those taking the placebo.