Wausau, WI – Parents may not be able to keep their kids from catching colds, but with the aid of probiotics, they may be able to reduce the number of days children stay sick. In a recent study, UAS LifeSciences’ Up4 Junior probiotic supplement was found to shorten the acute respiratory infection period in children.

“This was one of the few studies to look at the benefits of acute, short-term use of probiotics for upper respiratory heath,” said Greg Leyer, Ph.D., chief science officer for UAS Labs.

In a randomized, double-blind, controlled study by researchers at Lviv National Medical University and Lviv City Children’s Hospital in Ukraine, 225 healthy children ages 3-12 were given either a placebo (rice maltodextrin) or Up4 Junior, a probiotic blend containing 5 billion colony forming units (CFU) of Lactobacillus acidophilus DDS-1 and Bifidobacterium lactis UABla-12. The placebo and Up4 Junior supplement were administered to the participants on the first day that a member of their household showed signs of upper respiratory illness.

The median sickness period was shorter for children in the probiotic group, at five days, than for children in the placebo group, at seven days. These results were statistically significant. The median severity of the illness was also significantly smaller in the probiotic group (240 score-days) than in the placebo group (525 score days).

Since the study used the already formulated probiotic blend of Up4 Junior, which is available on the market, rather than individual strains, there is an additional benefit. As Leyer noted, “that means that parents who choose to give this probiotic blend to their children can get the exact formula used in the clinical trial.”

These data were published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Published in WholeFoods Magazine, January 2016, Online 12/7/2015