L rhamnosus Reduces Risk of Eczema

WELLINGTON, New Zealand—A recent double blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial found supplementation with Lactobacillus rhamnosus HN001 (commercially available as HOWARU Rhamnosus, from Danisco) substantially reduced the cumulative prevalence of eczema, but not atopy, by two years (J Allerg Clin Immunol. 2008;122(4):788-94) (DOI:10.1016/j.jaci.2008.07.011).
Pregnant women were randomized to take L rhamnosus, Bifidobacterium animalis subsp lactis strain HN019 or a placebo daily from 35 weeks gestation until six months if breast-feeding, and their infants were randomized to receive the same treatment from birth to two years (n = 474).
L rhamnosus significantly reduced (P=0.01) the risk of eczema in infants compared with the placebo, but this was not the case for B animalis subsp lactis. There was no significant effect of L rhamnosus or B animalis subsp lactis on atopy. L rhamnosus (71.5 percent) was more likely than B animalis subsp lactis (22.6 percent) to be present in the feces at three months, although detection rates were similar by 24 months.