Prebiotics and weight gain

Article Outline

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There have been few studies of the impact of prebiotics on weight gain in children and adolescents. In this issue of The Journal, Abrams et al evaluated the effect of a daily prebiotic supplement which consisted of a co-spray dried 1:1 mixture of oligofructose and long chain inulin compared to a control supplement. They found that subjects randomized to the prebiotic had a smaller increase in BMI compared to controls, and maintained their BMI Z-score while controls had increased BMI Z-score. Of interest is that the prebiotic appeared to have a greater impact on BMI in subjects who had higher intake of calcium.

This study did not focus on subjects who were overweight or randomly allocate the level of calcium intake, so the results may not be applicable to treatment of overweight and could be confounded by other aspects of diet and physical activity. Further research will be needed to evaluate this product and other prebiotics in the treatment of obesity.