Are probiotic treatments useful on fibromyalgia syndrome or chronic fatigue syndrome patients? A systematic review - Roman P +

Sly Saint

Sly Saint

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Are probiotic treatments useful on fibromyalgia syndrome or chronic fatigue syndrome patients? A systematic review.
Roman P1,2, Carrillo-Trabalón F3, Sánchez-Labraca N1, Cañadas F4, Estévez AF4, Cardona D1.

Abstract
Evidence suggests that the gut microbiota might play an important role in fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). Our goal is to systematically review the reported effect of probiotic treatments in patients diagnosed with FMS or CFS. A systematic review was carried out using 14 databases (PubMed, Cochrane Library, Scopus, PsycINFO, and others) in February 2016 to search for randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and pilot studies of CFS or FMS patient, published in the last ten years (from 2006 to 2016). The Jadad scale was used to asseverate the quality of the clinical trials considered.

Two studies (n=83) met the inclusion criteria, which were performed in CFS patients and both studies were considered as a 'High range of quality score'. The administration of Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota in CFS patients, over the course of 8 weeks, reduced anxiety scores. Likewise, this probiotic changed the faecal composition following 8 weeks of treatment. Additionally, the treatment with Bifidobacterium infantis 35624 in CFS patients, during the same period, reduced inflammatory biomarkers. The evidence about the usefulness of probiotics in CFS and FMS patients remains limited. The studied strains of probiotics have demonstrated a significant effect on modulating the anxiety and inflammatory processes in CFS patients. However, more experimental research, focusing mainly on the symptoms of the pathologies studied, is needed.
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https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29695180
 
The problem with the study for Bifidobacterium infantis 35624, (aka Align) is that the researchers were giving the test subjects 10 pills per day, not the recommended one per day as per the instructions on the package. That would make it very expensive for someone to do this on their own unless finances aren't an issue.
 
I have taken the yakult branded one several times for between 4/8 week periods and found it very helpful for gut issues. my irritable bowel used to alternate between constantly running to the toilet multiple times and constipation now its just the constipation slow motility is the problem. but just like everything else what might be helpful to one person can be harmful to another. as organisms we are just to damn complex.
 
I think the most recent research shows that Yakult and their kin are no more effective at affecting the gut than eating live yoghurt...and I think from memory it has way more sugar per 100ml to disguise the horrid taste ..I think eating a bit of live yoghurt a day might be a much cheaper option (and more satisfying if you like the taste) given how little evidence there is for whether it is likely to have any effect at all.

Eating enough fibre (from a variety of sources) and a balanced diet to keep your flora diverse is probably the best way to keep options open until something decent/definitive is published.

Personally although interesting, I think we are a million miles away from understanding a fraction of what’s going on in healthy individuals to be of any use as a treatment for the sick. I know lots has been published ...but I’m talking about understanding the detailed mechanics of what’s going on rather than observational studies with dubious correlations on a small sample.
 
arewenearlythereyet said:
I think the most recent research shows that Yakult and their kin are no more effective at affecting the gut than eating live yoghurt...and I think from memory it has way more sugar per 100ml to disguise the horrid taste ..I think eating a bit of live yoghurt a day might be a much cheaper option (and more satisfying if you like the taste) given how little evidence there is for whether it is likely to have any effect at all.

Eating enough fibre (from a variety of sources) and a balanced diet to keep your flora diverse is probably the best way to keep options open until something decent/definitive is published.

Personally although interesting, I think we are a million miles away from understanding a fraction of what’s going on in healthy individuals to be of any use as a treatment for the sick. I know lots has been published ...but I’m talking about understanding the detailed mechanics of what’s going on rather than observational studies with dubious correlations on a small sample.
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It's worth pointing out that many doctors now say not to take fibre for IBS. It can aggravate your symptoms.
 
adambeyoncelowe said:
It's worth pointing out that many doctors now say not to take fibre for IBS. It can aggravate your symptoms.
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Quite right I would say that “enough” depends upon the individual, although as a general population we aren’t eating enough fibre generally and some schools of thought say that eating too many refined carbs and not enough fibre can lead to digestive problems that are often confused with IBS.

I mainly look at general populations rather than specifics....this does show quite a worrying trend of self obsession with ‘being bloated’ and conflating this symptom with a multitude of complicated things ..when the route cause may be a lot more straightforward. I think this “noise” from the general population and media can cloud the more specific studies and cause conflation upon conflation.

However this thread is about probiotics and CFS/ME so I guess we should try and stay on topic :)
 
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