Gut Microbiota in Infants 91
1
tions of galactooligosaccharides and fructooligo-
saccharides have been used in infant formulae in
specified conditions. Some fructooligosaccha-
rides have been reported to enhance levels of un-
known microbes in the human gut, thus poten-
tially facilitating untoward effects in infants.
Therefore, when evaluating a probiotic or pre-
biotic for clinical use, the safety and clinical bene-
fit of that specific product must be documented
before it can be recommended for clinical appli-
cation.
Conclusions
- The healthy human microbiota is metabolically
active and provides an important defense
mechanism for the host. Deviations in its com-
position are related to multiple disease states
promoting the bifidogenic environment via
prebiotic galactooligosaccharides and microbes
in breast milk and introducing environmental
bacteria through contact with the infant- Both the succession of microbial communities
during the first years of life and the sequelae of
these events need to be clarified in more detail - The first colonization steps have a crucial role
in the infant microbiota and later health. Bifi-
dobacteria play a key role in this process - The mother-infant contact has an important
impact on initial microbiota development, pro-
viding the critical first inoculum already prior
to birth, followed by another inoculum at deliv-
ery, and then progressing with breastfeeding - The potential application of specific probiotics
and/or prebiotics to influence microbiota de-
velopment for the treatment and prevention of
disease also warrants further evaluation
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DOI: 10.1159/000360322