The C.A.M. Report
Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Fair, Balanced, and to the Point
  • About this web log

    This blog ran from 2006 to 2016 and was intended as an objective and dispassionate source of information on the latest CAM research. Since my background is in pharmacy and allopathic medicine, I view all CAM as advancing through the development pipeline to eventually become integrated into mainstream medical practice. Some will succeed while others fail. But all are treated fairly here.

  • About the author

    John Russo, Jr., PharmD, is president of The MedCom Resource, Inc. Previously, he was senior vice president of medical communications at www.Vicus.com, a complementary and alternative medicine website.

  • Common sense considerations

    The material on this weblog is for informational purposes. It is not medical advice or counsel. Be smart, consult your health professional before using CAM.

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  • Recent Comments

    A prebiotic reduces the incidence of atopic dermatitis in high-risk infants

    For the first time prebiotics lowered the risk atopic dermatitis in a high-risk population of infants.

    More than 200 infants at risk for atopy (an allergy involving an inherited immunoglobulin of the IgE type) took part in the study. Those on bottle-feeding were randomly assigned to a prebiotic formula (a mixture of galacto- and long chain fructo-oligosaccharides) or maltodextrine as placebo.

    • Significantly fewer infants given the prebiotic developed atopic dermatitis
    • Diet had no effect on the severity of the dermatitis
    • Prebiotic supplements were associated with fecal bifidobacteria counts
    • But there was no difference in lactobacilli counts

    The investigators proposed that oligosaccharides affect immune development by altering bowel flora. Prebiotics might have a role in primary allergy prevention during infancy.

    The distinguishing characteristics of prebiotics compared to probiotics and synbiotics were discussed here earlier.

    10/20/06 23:02 JR

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