Stratum Nutrition pegs postbiotics as “viable alternative” for infant microbiome support

27 Jul 2022 --- Postbiotics are seeing increasing interest in targeting a healthy gut microbiome for infants, according to Stratum Nutrition. Though prebiotics and probiotics are proliferating the space, the company is spotlighting industry benefits to using postbiotics in functional F&B.

A recent study revealed Stratum Nutrition’s Lactobacillus LB LBiome could support digestive health and establish a healthy microbiome, with the company touting it as a “viable alternative” to probiotics and prebiotics.

“The microbiome is important in that it is our body’s front line of defense against outside organisms that we ingest, and obviously, we want to support that across all ages but especially in infants and populations that might be more easily susceptible to outside organisms,” Alexis Collins, director, product and brand strategy, Stratum Nutrition, tells NutritionInsight. 

“Due to the ease at which postbiotics can be incorporated into different delivery systems and functional foods and beverages, we expect the number of postbiotic ingredients available to continue to grow, and postbiotics will eventually become mainstream.”

Postbiotics differ from pre and probiotics in that they use cells and cell fragments of non-living organisms.The nature of postbiotics
Postbiotics differ from pre- and probiotics in that they include organisms that are not alive. Stratum Nutrition explains that studies have revealed that these inanimate organisms’ cell fragments and microbial cells can have the same benefits as their living counterparts, including the production of metabolites and population of healthy microorganisms. 

Collins explains that one of the main benefits of using a postbiotic is that it gives their product a flexibility “that cannot be obtained with live organisms that need to remain viable after manufacturing and potentially sitting on a shelf for 12 months or more before being consumed.”

Moreover, she underscores that postbiotics work fast compared to pre- or probiotics. “There is no time spent waiting for colonization,” Collins says. “LBiome adheres to the gut lining and gets to work supporting digestive health by adhering to the gut lining and creating an inhospitable environment for unwanted organisms.”

Solving serious problems
The company states that developing a healthy microbiome takes about three to four years. During this time, infants are susceptible to pathogens and problems that can lead to dehydration. Usually, rehydration therapies and antibiotics – which can further decrease microbiota – are used for treatment, yet, establishing a healthy microbiome early on may be a better option.

Furthermore, Stratum Nutrition holds that another problem with traditional “living” probiotics like Bifidobacterium and human milk oligosaccharides is their limited shelf life and the possibility of translocation. Translocation is when living organisms from the microbiome transcend the gastrointestinal tract and relocate to other parts and systems of the body. 

Translocation in some immune-compromised individuals can cause infections, sickness and – in extreme cases – sepsis. However, Collins illustrates that this is not a problem when using inanimate Lactobacillus.  

“I think the most important aspect of postbiotics is that we have always been consuming them,” she says. “Dead cells are ingested all the time from our environment, from fermented foods and supplements, along with the live cells. Now, we are taking a closer look at what these inanimate cells can do in the body.”Alexis Collins says that postbiotics are perfect for building the microbiome of newborns who may be unable to breastfeed.

“Plus, there are no facility contamination or genetic translocation concerns when dealing with inanimate cells.”

A century of evidence
The company further reveals that the process of killing Lactobacillus with a heat source and using it as an inanimate postbiotic has been used for over 100 years and was first marketed in France around 1928.

Additionally, it notes that the extensive research conducted during this time has established its safety for infants, children and adults. This plethora of research has even helped to find what researchers call the “optimal dose” of 170 mg twice daily, and each dose is reported to contain about ten billion bacterial cells and cell fragments.

“It is the most clinically researched digestive health postbiotic and the most clinically researched postbiotic for children’s digestive health,” concludes Collins.

By William Bradford Nichols