In the News: Probiotic Linked To Fewer Upper Respiratory Tract Symptoms

Findings from a study presented at Digestive Disease Week® 2021 revealed an association between the use of probiotics and a reduction in upper respiratory tract symptoms among older and overweight men and women.*

The research team reviewed diary entries completed by the subjects during the trial to determine the presence of upper respiratory symptoms that included sore throat, wheezing, and coughing.

After one to two weeks of supplementation, subjects who received probiotics exhibited a delay in the time it took to record their first upper respiratory tract symptoms.

At the end of the study, there was a 27% lower incidence of upper respiratory tract symptoms reported by probiotic-supplemented participants in comparison with those who received a placebo.

Editor’s Note: The benefit of probiotics supplementation was greatest among those people who were at least 45 years of age, or who were obese.

* Digestive Disease Week® 2021. May 23.

An article in Nutritional Neuroscience reported an improved response to the effects of social stress following supplementation with magnesium, B vitamins, green tea, and rhodiola in a trial involving moderately stressed men and women.*

Participants received a placebo or one of three nutrient combinations. The first treatment group received magnesium, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, folate, green tea extract, and rhodiola extract. The second group was given magnesium, B vitamin complex, and rhodiola extract, and the third group received magnesium, B vitamin complex, and green tea extract.

After receiving the supplements, the participants underwent a social-stress-inducing test, and resting state EEG was administered.

Combined treatment with magnesium, B vitamin complex, green tea, and rhodiola was associated with a significant increase in theta waves as measured by EEG, indicating a relaxed, alert state. Participants in this group reported less subjective stress, anxiety, and disturbed mood.

Editor’s Note: “There is a significant practical benefit of a nonpharmaceutical method of reducing the negative impact of stress, considering the associated profound detriment to the quality of life of individuals and substantial social and economic societal costs,” the authors stated.

* Nutr Neurosci. 2021 Apr 26;1-15.

Women Needing Knee Replacement Shown to have Vitamin D Deficiency

Having enough vitamin D may not only help prevent some pain associated with total knee (replacement) surgery but could help to prevent the condition in the first place, according to a study published in Menopause.*

The research included 226 postmenopausal women scheduled for total knee replacement who had 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels of less than 30 ng/mL or moderate levels of at least 30 ng/mL.

Of the women needing knee replacement, 67% had less than 30 ng/mL of 25-hydroxyvitamin D.

Editor’s Note: In addition to deficient levels of vitamin D, smoking and having a high body mass index (BMI) were independent risk factors for experiencing moderate to severe pain following knee replacement surgery.

* Menopause. 2021 May 5.

Higher Dietary Antioxidant Intake Associated with Lower Cognitive Impairment

Among older individuals who consumed more antioxidants, there was a lower risk of cognitive impairment later in life, a study in The Journals of Gerontology® Series A reported. *

Cognitive function was evaluated 20.2 years after the beginning of the study in 1993.

Among those whose Comprehensive Dietary Antioxidant Index Scores placed them among the top 25% of participants, the odds for developing cognitive impairment were 16% lower than those of participants with the lowest 25% of scores.

For participants in the highest quartile for Vitamin C Equivalent Antioxidant Capacity, the odds for developing cognitive impairment were 25% lower compared to those in the lowest quartile.

Editor’s Note: When antioxidant nutrients were individually analyzed, greater daily intake of vitamin C, vitamin E, carotenoids, and flavonoids was associated with a reduced cognitive impairment risk.

* J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2021 Apr 7.