SynthesisPeerJ2026
Effects of probiotic supplementation on immune and inflammatory markers in athletes: an umbrella review and re-analysis of published meta-analyses of randomised controlled trials.
Synthesis in PeerJ, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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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.
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
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Abstract
Background: Intensive training and competition can compromise athletes' immune function and elevate inflammatory responses. Although probiotics are widely studied as a nutritional intervention, existing meta-analyses have reported inconsistent findings regarding their efficacy. This umbrella review and re-analysis aimed to synthesize and evaluate the available evidence on the effects of probiotic supplementation on specific immune and inflammatory markers in athletes. Methods: We systematically searched PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, EMbase, and Scopus for meta-analyses published up to December 1, 2025, and supplemented these with recent randomised controlled trials (RCTs) (up to December 15, 2025). Quality was assessed using Assessment of Multiple Systematic Reviews 2 (AMSTAR2) and Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) tools. Outcomes of interest included tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-8 (IL-8), interleukin-10 (IL-10), immunoglobulin A (IgA) and interferon-gamma (IFN-γ). Overlap among studies was evaluated using the Graphical Representation of Overlap for OVErviews (GROOVE) tool, and data were re-analyzed using random- or fixed-effects models in Stata 15.0. Results: This umbrella analysis incorporated five meta-analyses (encompassing 69 RCTs) and one additional recent RCT, totaling 3,413 participants. Results showed that probiotic supplementation significantly reduced levels of the pro-inflammatory marker TNF-α (Effect Size (ES) = -0.59, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) [-0.94 to -0.24], Conclusions: These robust results demonstrate that probiotic supplementation modulates exercise-induced immune disturbances in athletes by attenuating pro-inflammatory responses and enhancing mucosal immunity. These findings support its role as a strategic nutritional approach for immune protection. Future research should emphasize strain-specific efficacy and optimal dosing to enable personalized recommendations for athletes.
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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.