Preventing colitis through alteration of the intestinal biota
This is a pretty nice overview of probiotics and their potential benefit to the GI tract. What does surprise me, however, is that with the whole issue of antibiotic overuse, all the concern is geared towards selection of antibiotic resistant bacteria (which, by the way, is a major contributing factor to the deaths of the children noted above with the flu). No concern is ever voiced about the destruction of normal, protective flora. Personally, I think this is the much, much more important concern affecting a much larger number of patients, especially children. How many infants are giving antibiotics for ear infections in their first 6 months without any thought to replacing the normal flora that were wiped out and are essential for proper development of that infant’s immune system? Gastroenterology Online –