Effects of Prebiotic and Probiotic Supplementation on Lactase Deficiency and Lactose Intolerance: A Systematic Review of Controlled Trials
Open accessAbstract
Lactose intolerance (LI) is characterized by the presence of primarily gastrointestinal clinical signs resulting from colonic fermentation of lactose, the absorption of which is impaired due to a deficiency in the lactase enzyme. These clinical signs can be modified by several factors, including lactose dose, residual lactase expression, concurrent ingestion of other dietary components, gut-transit time, and enteric microbiome composition. In many of individuals with lactose malabsorption, clinical signs may be absent after consumption of normal amounts of milk or, in particular, dairy products (yogurt and cheese), which contain lactose partially digested by live bacteria. The intestinal microbiota can be modulated by biotic supplementation, which may alleviate the signs and symptoms of LI. This systematic review summarizes the available evidence on the influence of prebiotics and probiotics on lactase deficiency and LI. The literature search was conducted using the MEDLINE (via PUBMED) and SCOPUS databases following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, and included randomized controlled trials. For each study selected, the risk of bias was assessed following the Cochrane Collaboration methodology. Our findings showed varying degrees of efficacy but an overall positive relationship between probiotics and LI in relation to specific strains and concentrations. Limitations regarding the wide heterogeneity between the studies included in this review should be taken into account. Only one study examined the benefits of prebiotic supplementation and LI. So further clinical trials are needed in order to gather more evidence.
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Regarding lactose intolerance, variable but generally favorable effects were demonstrated when probiotics were administered.
“Regarding lactose intolerance, variable but generally favorable effects were demonstrated when probiotics were administered [120,121].”
From The Potential Impact of Probiotics on Human Health: An Update on Their Health-Promoting Properties (2024) · cites this paper as [120]
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The Potential Impact of Probiotics on Human Health: An Update on Their Health-Promoting Properties
Maftei, N.-M., Raileanu, C. R., Balta, A. A., Ambrose, L., Boev, M., Marin, D. B., & Lisa, E. L. (2024) · Microorganisms · doi:10.3390/microorganisms12020234 · Cited by 381 · see citing works
- Authors
- Leis, R., de Castro, M.-J., de Lamas, C., Picáns, R., & Couce, M. L.
- Affiliations
- Universidade de Santiago de Compostela (ES)
- Department of Pediatrics, University Clinical Hospital of Santiago de Compostela, 15704 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
- Facultad de Medicina, Departamento de Pediatría, Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, 15704 Santiago de Compostela, Spain
- Corresponding author
- Leis, Rosaura
- Venue
- Nutrients
- Publisher
- MDPI AG
- Published
- 2020-05-20
- Volume
- 12
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 1487
- ISSN
- 2072-6643 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC7284493
- OpenAlex
- W3027794467
- Cited by
- 101
- References
- 63
- Citations by year
- 2026: 14 · 2025: 15 · 2024: 20 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 20 · 2021: 15 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 1
- FWCI
- 1.06
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- dx.doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Nutrients (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Food Science › Probiotics and Fermented Foods
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Digestive system and related health
- Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Microbial Metabolites in Food Biotechnology
- Keywords
- lactose intolerance, lactase deficiency, prebiotics, probiotics, probiotic supplementation, prebiotic supplementation, gut microbiota, lactose malabsorption, dairy products, yogurt, cheese, probiotic strains
- MeSH terms
- Gastrointestinal Microbiome, Animals, Diarrhea, Diet, Flatulence, Food, Fortified, Humans, Lactose, Lactose Intolerance, Milk, Vomiting, Abdominal Pain, Databases, Factual, Probiotics, Lactase, Prebiotics
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