Use of the Multispecies Probiotic Winclove 500/BactoSan pro FOS Leads to Less Gastrointestinal Complaints in Adults—An Observational <i>In Vivo</i> Pilot Study

Abstract

The potential benefit of probiotics on the gut microbiota and on various gastrointestinal disorders is well documented. It has become clear that these probiotic effects are strain-specific, underlying the necessity for a well-founded strain selection for research and clinical practice. Whether probiotics also have a positive effect on parameters of gastrointestinal function in a healthy population is less investigated. The objective of this in vivo observational study was to investigate the effect of a 6-week intervention with a multispecies probiotic product on gut health and quality of life (QoL) in a population of otherwise healthy adults and to evaluate the feasibility of conducting a controlled trial on probiotic effects in this population. A total of 40 participants from 3 different health centres were included in the study. After a 1-week inclusion phase, participants were supplemented for a 6-week period with Winclove 500/BactoSan pro FOS. During the run-in phase and each week during the observational period, gastrointestinal functional parameters were documented by an adapted version of the Eypasch questionnaire. Data on QoL was collected at baseline and at the end of the intervention period. The total gastrointestinal (GI) symptom score was reduced from 10 (4 - 21) at baseline to 6 (0 - 15) (p < 0.05) after 6 weeks intervention. More specifically, after the probiotic intervention the percentage of participants which were fully resolved of a particular symptom significantly increased to 27.5% (p < 0.02) for gastrointestinal pain, to 25% (p < 0.03) for epigastric fullness/bloating and to 20% (p < 0.02) for flatulence, compared to baseline. The treatment was well-tolerated. This observational study provides important information on the ability to investigate potential effects of a probiotic product in otherwise healthy adults. The promising results Winclove 500/BactoSan pro FOS showed on gut health and QoL in this target group should be further investigated in a randomized, placebo-controlled study.