Antibiotics, C-Sec May Alter Babies' Gut Bacteria

Antibiotics and birth by C-section can alter or disrupt the development of gut bacteria in the babies. These are the findings of two new studies conducted by a team of researchers in the United States.

Intestinal bacteria are known to play a number of roles in the human body. In addition to help with the digestion of food, gut bacteria also plays an integral role in the immune system. The level of gut bacteria are known to influence mental health, obesity, heart health, digestive diseases and autoimmune disorders such as allergies and asthma.

However, how babies develop the first set of these gut bacteria or their individual gut microbiome is still a mystery. According to reports, the two new studies followed the infants through their toddlerhood to the first three years of their life and discovered that the initial years of the babies ate critical to the development of gut microbiome.

According to lead researcher of the study, Dr. Martin Blaser of New York University, the outcome of not having the right bugs at the right age during the critical period of life are still unknown.

During the study, the researchers analyzed the stool samples of 43 US infants to notice the changes in their gut bacteria. The infant stool samples were tracked for a continuous period of two years.

At the same time, another team of researchers from the Massachusetts General Hospital and the Broad Institute also tracked the stool samples of 39 Finnish children will they turned three.

Both the team of researchers found that repeated use of antibiotics during childhood hindered the complete development of the gut microbiome. They noticed a reduced diversity of the bacteria that are thought to be a part of a healthy microbiome.

In addition, babies delivered by C-section were found to possess a microbial signature that have lower levels of bacteria that boosts the intestinal immunity.