Probiotics – be careful what you swallow…

The current craze for probiotics in Western society is a multi-billion dollar industry. However, cautionary notes are emerging. At least one expert commentator has issued a caution, noting a lack of large, long-term clinical trials proving that probiotics offer clinical benefits for healthy people, absence of the limitations upon claims that can be made in relation to the promotion of supplements to improve health – there are few restrictions on structure and/or function claims, such as “boosts digestive health” or “supports the immune system,” and information about potential adverse effects is not mandated. The commentary, published here in JAMA Internal Medicine, also points out that consumers may not know that probiotics may create a risk for problems such as opportunistic infections and allergic reactions. Added to this, the quality of products may be poor: the FDA inspected 656 facilities producing a wide variety of dietary supplements in 2017 and found serious violations in more than half of the inspected facilities. Caveat emptor!