Does Lactobacillus Reuteri Help Your Baby With Colic?

Did you ever wonder why Lactobacillus Reuteri is good for your baby?

Lactobacillus Reuteri? What’s that? This is a beneficial bacteria that is found in the humans intestinal tract and it’s not always there in the numbers we want.

What happens in your baby’s gut when it has low numbers of this bacteria? This is called newborn gut deficiency. Without good bacteria in your baby’s gut, bad bacteria will thrive, particularly those kinds that are linked to higher risks of autoimmune diseases and metabolic issues such as colic, eczema, allergies and diabetes.

You can help restore Lactobacillus Reuteri in your baby’s gut and reduce the bad bacteria that is linked to these higher risk of health issues.

So initially Lactobacillus Reuteri was used to treat necrotizing colitis and this is a gastrointestinal disease that causes infection, inflammation and it’s particularly dangerous for infants and especially those that are born prematurely. This bacteria was used for its anti-inflammatory effects.

Colic effects about 20% of infants aand the use of Lactobacillus Reuteri in infants who are breastfed really reduces the crying time in infants with colic. Lactobacillus Reuteri increases the number of a kind of T cell called a Treg cell in the intestines, which can be absorbed back into the blood to benefit the rest of the body.

It’s been clinically shown to improve gastric emptying time, which is the amount of time it takes for, you know, the food to move through baby’s system and also reduce the frequency of spit ups.

So how does your baby get low on Lactobacillus Reuteri? There’s some situations that can happen that impact the balance of a baby’s microbiome and can put your baby at risk.

For instance, were you or your baby born via C-section? If you and your baby were born via C-section, which means your baby did not come in contact with mom’s beneficial gut bacteria through her birth canal, this good bacteria helps develop a healthy gut microbiome in your baby and would really have long term health benefits.

Number two, were you and your baby given antibiotics, pre-delivery or post pregnancy? If you or your baby were given antibiotics, this would eliminate both good and bad bacteria. Although antibiotics can be really beneficial in certain instances, they also deplete the microbiome causing long term changes in the composition of your intestines. This can impact your overall health and increase your risk of developing other diseases like inflammatory bowel disease which is also known as IBD, obesity and even linked to diabetes

Number 3, does your baby have diaper rash or more than five watery poops per day? If your baby poops more than five times a day, the amount of baby poops is a really a visible sign or signal of good versus bad bacteria in a baby’s gut. Babies with more good bacteria have fewer loose poops, and they’re better able to absorb all the nutrients that comes with mother’s breast milk.

The more loose stools that babies bottoms come in contact with, the more the skin can be irritated, leading to diaper rash. If you want to learn more about this diaper rash and reasons that babies bottoms become irritated, check out my other video.

All of these reasons indicate that your baby might be missing good bacteria or have some sort of imbalance allowing harmful bacteria to thrive.

So to recap these bad bacteria are linked to higher risks of colic, eczema, diabetes, allergies and obesity. Newborn gut deficiency is a hidden problem which effects a lot of babies born in the USA today.

So what can you do to restore your newborn’s gut deficiency? You can use a nipple cream that contains Lactobacillus Reuteri, and that way when you’re nursing, your baby is ingesting the bacteria this way. You can supplement your newborn with probiotics. You can avoid antibiotics if possible and get your doctor to test if your baby has a bacterial versus a viral infection, as viral infections cannot be treated with antibiotics. You may also look into some alternative remedies to help your baby get past their infection.

And if you’re unsure about what to do, please consult your medical practitioner. So there you have it. That’s why Lactobacillus Reuteri is beneficial to your baby!