17/10/2026
👶 PROBIOTICS FOR MUM OR BABY — DOES IT MAKE A DIFFERENCE? 🦠
This is exactly the sort of research I love sharing with parents!
We know that a baby’s developing gut microbiome plays an important role in digestive health. But if we want to support those beneficial bacteria, is it better for a breastfeeding mother to take probiotics, or to give them directly to her baby?
🔬 A fascinating 2023 study investigated exactly this.
Researchers compared 47 breastfeeding mother–baby pairs.
One group of mothers took probiotics during late pregnancy and after birth. In the other group, the babies received probiotics directly.
The results were striking!
💙 100% of directly supplemented babies had the selected Bifidobacterium infantis strain detected in their gut by day 14.
🩷 Only 25% of babies whose mothers took probiotics had the same strain detected.
Even more interestingly, the babies receiving probiotics directly showed a significantly more favourable pattern of crying and fussing.
Does this mean probiotics cure colic? No. This was a small study involving healthy breastfed babies, not a clinical trial treating colic.
But it does raise fascinating questions about how we can support the developing infant microbiome.
👨⚕️ My advice to parents is based on research like this and 30 years of clinical experience.
I believe understanding why a baby is unsettled is far more useful than simply trying to suppress the symptoms.
That’s why I’ve developed my Baby Birth Triad™ approach, looking at the different factors that may contribute to colic, reflux and unsettled behaviour.
🎓 PARENTS: Discover more in my Calming Colic 360° course on Skool. Free trial available — link in bio!
🎓 HEALTH PROFESSIONALS: My professional course is COMING SOON, exploring the science behind infant colic, the microbiome, antibiotics, probiotics, breastfeeding and much more.
📚 Research: Melsaether et al. (2023). Nutrients, 15(18), 4000.
💬 I’d love to know: Were you advised to take probiotics yourself, or to give them directly to your baby?
ColicSupport BabyReflux InfantHealth Osteopathy BabyBirthTriad CalmingColic