Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2010 Feb 5:9:5.
doi: 10.1186/1475-2891-9-5.

Efficacy of Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) supplement in management of constipation among nursing home residents

Hyang Mi An  1 , Eun Hye Baek, Seok Jang, Do Kyung Lee, Mi Jin Kim, Jung Rae Kim, Kang Oh Lee, Jong Gi Park, Nam Joo Ha
Affiliations

Efficacy of Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) supplement in management of constipation among nursing home residents

Hyang Mi An et al. Nutr J. .

Abstract

Background: Constipation is a significant problem in the elderly, specifically nursing home and/or extended-care facility residents are reported to suffer from constipation. Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are beneficial probiotic organisms that contribute to improved nutrition, microbial balance, and immuno-enhancement of the intestinal tract, as well as diarrhea and constipation effect. The objective of this study was to investigate the efficacy of this LAB supplement in the management of nursing home residents.

Methods: Nineteen subjects (8M, 11F; mean age 77.1 +/- 10.1) suffering with chronic constipation were assigned to receive LAB (3.0 x 10(11) CFU/g) twice (to be taken 30 minutes after breakfast and dinner) a day for 2 weeks in November 2008. Subjects draw up a questionnaire on defecation habits (frequency of defecation, amount and state of stool), and we collected fecal samples from the subjects both before entering and after ending the trial, to investigate LAB levels and inhibition of harmful enzyme activities. Results were tested with SAS and Student's t-test.

Results: Analysis of questionnaire showed that there was an increase in the frequency of defecation and amount of stool excreted in defecation habit after LAB treatment, but there were no significant changes. And it also affects the intestinal environment, through significantly increase (p < 0.05) fecal LAB levels. In addition, tryptophanase and urease among harmful enzyme activities of intestinal microflora were significantly decreased (p < 0.05) after LAB treatment.

Conclusion: LAB, when added to the standard treatment regimen for nursing home residents with chronic constipation, increased defecation habit such as frequency of defecation, amount and state of stool. So, it may be used as functional probiotics to improve human health by helping to prevent constipation.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Changes of total LAB levels in subjects. All 19 subjects were orally administered twice (to be taken 30 minutes after breakfast and dinner) a day for 2 weeks with LAB (3.0 × 1011 CFU/g). Before: before the experiment started, After: at the end of experiment. Data are presented as means and standard deviation. *p < 0.05 statistically significant compared with before LAB treatment.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Bharucha AE. Constipation. Best Pract Res Clin Gastroenterol. 2007;21:709–731. doi: 10.1016/j.bpg.2007.07.001. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Bosaeus I. Fibre effects on intestinal functions (diarrhea, constipation and irritable bowel syndrome) Clin Nutr Suppliments. 2004;1:33–38. doi: 10.1016/j.clnu.2004.09.006. - DOI
    1. Volicer L, Lane P, Panke J, Lyman P. Management of constipation in residents with dementia: Sorbitol effectiveness and cost. J Am Med Dir Assoc. 2004;5:239–241. - PubMed
    1. Frank L, Schmier J, Kleinman L. Time and economic cost of constipation care in nursing homes. J Am Med Dir Assoc. 2002;3:215–223. - PubMed
    1. Kim JH, Kim HJ, Son JH, Chun HN, Yang JO, Choi SJ, Park NS, Choi GH, Kim SK. Effect of Lactobacillus fermentum MG590 on alchole Metabolism and liver function in rats. J Microbial Biotechno. 2003;13:919–925.

Publication types

MeSH terms