Study published in Allergy magazine showed that babies born in first three months of the pandemic compared to those born in the pre-confinement period, developed less intestinal problems and food allergies .
The research was developed by University College Cork, in Ireland. The hypothesis is that the less contact with the outside world and, consequently, with fewer disease-causing bacteria, caused these children to develop a intestinal microbiota better than that of babies born before the pandemic.
Furthermore, “pandemic babies” had fewer infections caused by bacteria and, consequently, made less use of antibiotics . They also benefited from greater duration of breastfeeding since breast milk is largely responsible for strengthening the immune system at this stage of life.
“A fascinating result is that due to reduced human exposures and protection against infections, only 17% of babies needed antibiotics up to a year, which correlated with higher levels of beneficial bacteria, such as bifidobacterium.
The study provided a rich repository of data, which we will continue to analyze and investigate in the future,” commented Professor Liam O'Mahony, APC Microbiome Ireland Principal Investigator and Professor of Immunology at University College Cork.
For the study, fecal exams from 351 babies from both groups were analyzed and these children will be evaluated again when they turn five years old to continue investigating the differences in the digestive system of babies born during the pandemic.
Source: CNN Brasil
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