SynthesisNutrition reviews2025
Effects of Infant Formula Supplemented With Prebiotics on the Gut Microbiome, Gut Environment, Growth Parameters, and Safety and Tolerance: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Synthesis in Nutrition reviews, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT07309536 (Mediterranean Diet Uptake and Nutrition on Child Health, Inflammation, and Early-life Symbiosis), which is not on this map. Cited by 7 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Mediterranean Diet Uptake and Nutrition on Child Health, Inflammation, and Early-life Symbiosis (MUNCHIES): A Randomized Controlled Trial
Who cites it
7 citing papers in PubMed.
- Impact of Infant Feeding Mode on Gut Microbiome Composition in Early Life: Evidence from an Egyptian Cohort.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Clostridium Abundance and Lower Weight-for-AgeJMIR pediatrics and parenting · 2026Article
- Nutraceutical Interventions in Stunting: Advances, Challenges, and Prospects.Food science & nutrition · 2026Review
- Seeding the Future: How Feeding Mode Shapes the Infant Gut Microbiota.Microorganisms · 2026Review
- Programming the Infant Gut: How Maternal and Early Life Nutrition Shape the Infant Microbiome and Long-term Health-A Narrative Review.Molecular nutrition & food research · 2026Review
- Lactulose selectively stimulates members of the gut microbiota, as determined by multi-modal activity-based sorting.Gut microbes · 2025Article
- Management of Neonates in the Special Care Nursery and Its Impact on the Developing Gut Microbiota: A Comprehensive Clinical Review.Microorganisms · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
contextPrebiotics are often added to infant formulas to mimic the benefits of oligosaccharides found in human milk.
objectiveThis systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated the effects of prebiotic-supplemented cow's milk-based formula on the gut microbiota, gut environment, growth parameters, and safety and tolerance in infants ≤6 months old, compared with a standard formula or human milk comparator. DATA SOURCES: Searches were performed in the PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and ProQuest Dissertations & Theses databases. Articles were included that reported on randomized controlled trials, were published from inception until April 2024, and met prespecified inclusion and exclusion criteria. DATA EXTRACTION: Outcomes included gut microbiota (eg, diversity; taxa at phylum, family, genus and species levels), gut environment (eg, pH, secretory immunoglobulin A, fecal calprotectin, fecal metabolites), growth parameters (eg, z scores), and safety and tolerance. Fixed or random effects models were used and mean differences (MDs) with 95% CIs were calculated to assess pooled effects. Risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane Collaboration Tool (RoB 2). DATA ANALYSIS: A total of 30 articles met inclusion criteria, with 5290 infants included. Whereas effects on Lactobacillus were inconsistent, prebiotic formula supplementation increased Bifidobacterium counts (k = 7 [MD: 0.49; 95% CI, 0.27-0.71]; I2 = 13%; P < .00001) and decreased fecal pH (k = 7 [MD: -0.39; 95% CI, -0.57 to -0.20]; I2 = 0%; P < .0001) compared with standard formula. Prebiotic formula supplementation increased total bacteria compared with human milk (MD: 0.41 [95% CI, 0.17-0.65]; I2 = 8%; P = .0006). In terms of growth parameters, weight-for-age z scores favored the prebiotic formula group compared with the human milk group (k = 2 [MD: 0.23; 95% CI, 0.04-0.42]; I2 = 7%; P = .02).
conclusionsPrebiotic supplementation in infant formula can positively alter the gut microbiota, particularly Bifidobacterium, without negative impacts on growth. Standardized, high-quality research is needed to confirm the study findings and inform guidelines for prebiotic use in infant nutrition. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: PROSPERO registration no. CRD42021253589.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.