SynthesisBMC nutrition2025
Effect of probiotic and prebiotics supplementation on hemoglobin levels and iron absorption among women of reproductive age and children: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in BMC nutrition, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Pooled it
- Effect of combined probiotic and iron-folic acid supplementation on iron status and gut inflammation markers: a randomized controlled trial among anaemic children.European journal of clinical nutrition · 2026Trial
- Trial
- The Gut-Iron-Immune Axis in Severe Anaemia and Bacteraemia.Nutrients · 2026Review
- Promoting clinical trials in pediatric IgA nephropathy through extrapolation: an artificial intelligence-enhanced literature review of the disease in pediatrics sponsored by the Kidney Health Initiative.Pediatric nephrology (Berlin, Germany) · 2026Review
- Iron Complexes With Proteins, Carbohydrates, and Maillard Products in Dairy Systems: Implication for Fortification, Bioavailability, and Product Functionality.Comprehensive reviews in food science and food safety · 2026Review
- Screening of probiotics for promoting mineral absorption based onFrontiers in microbiology · 2026Article
- Probiotics and iron bioavailability: mechanisms, clinical evidence, and translational applications-a comprehensive review of the probiotic strainFrontiers in nutrition · 2026Review
- Exploring the gut microbiome's influence on cancer-associated anemia: Mechanisms, clinical challenges, and innovative therapies.World journal of gastrointestinal pharmacology and therapeutics · 2025Article
- Bioconversion of FePharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Role of gut microbiota in thalassemia: a review of therapeutic prospects.Frontiers in physiology · 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
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThis review aims to assess the effect of oral administration of probiotics and/or prebiotics in children and women of reproductive age (WRA) to improve intestinal iron absorption, hemoglobin, and ferritin levels.
methodsRandomized controlled trials from published literature on probiotics and or prebiotics for prevention or treatment of anemia as a supplement or fortification in children or WRA till Jan 31, 2023, were included. Studies on probiotics and prebiotics in patients with anemia due to other causes were excluded. Screening and data extraction was done using Distiller SR and meta-analysis was performed using Revman 5.4.1.
resultsA total of 1925 records were identified from Pubmed, Embase, and Cochrane, of which 29 were included in the systematic review (14 supplementation and 15 fortification studies; 15 studies in children and 14 studies in WRA). The major interventions included galacto-oligosaccharide, inulin, heat-killed H61, Lactobacillus plantarum 299v, Lactobacillus reuteri, Lactobacillus acidophilus. Meta-analysis of 5 studies in WRA showed that the use of prebiotics and/or probiotics with or without iron was associated with little or no effect on hemoglobin. However, there is low certainty of evidence that the intervention led to improvement in fractional absorption of iron as compared to placebo or iron [8 studies, n = 335, mean increase 0.74%, 95%CI-0.11-1.38, p = 0.02]. Meta-analysis of 6 studies in WRA using prebiotics and/or probiotics with or without iron led to a significant increase in ferritin levels in WRA (mean increase 2.45 ng/ml, 95% CI 0.61-4.3, p = 0.009, n = 320) [Moderate certainty of evidence]. In children, meta-analysis of up to 8 studies did not result in any significant change in hemoglobin, ferritin and fractional iron absorption [low or very low certainty of evidence].
conclusionThere is some evidence to show that the use of prebiotics or probiotics (especially Lp299v and GOS) with or without oral iron can improve iron absorption in women and lead to improvement in ferritin levels in women. However, the current evidence does not conclusively show the benefit of these interventions in improving hemoglobin levels in women and children.
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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.