Study Evaluates Effects of Probiotics During Pregnancy

MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
“My nightly probiotics to help me :) barely holding back PostOp issues! Very GRATEFUL for them!” by Ashley Steel is licensed under CC BY 2.0Mahsa Nordqvist MD
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Sahlgrenska University Hospital
Gothenburg, Sweden 

MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?

Response: We have shown in earlier observational studies that there is an association between probiotic intake and lower risk of preterm delivery and preeclampsia. Since pregnancy is a time of rapid change and different exposures can have different effect depending on the time of exposure, we wanted to find out if there is any special time point of consumption that might be of greater importance when it comes to these associations.

MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings?

Response: In our main findings we observed an association with consumption of probiotic milk products during early pregnancy and lower risk of preterm delivery, and consumption during second half of pregnancy and reduced risk of preeclampsia.

MedicalResearch.com: What should readers take away from your report?

Response: These findings are only statistical observations, they do not prove causality and are therefore not enough to start recommending probiotic consumption to pregnant women.

MedicalResearch.com: What recommendations do you have for future research as a result of this work?

Response: Pathophysiological effect of probiotics on the maternal inflammatory response must be studied in more detail, including strain-/species-specific randomized controlled trials. The results of our study might be of help when creating new hypothesis and designing future randomized controlled trials.

No disclosures

Citations:

Mahsa Nordqvist et al. Timing of probiotic milk consumption during pregnancy and effects on the incidence of preeclampsia and preterm delivery: a prospective observational cohort study in Norway, BMJ Open (2018). DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2017-018021

http://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/8/1/e018021.citation-tools

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Last Updated on January 24, 2018 by Marie Benz MD FAAD