Transcript Probiotics and Allergy Shalini Jain , Hariom Yadav and PR Sinha Animal Biochemistry Division National Dairy Research Institute Karnal,Haryana.

Probiotics and Allergy
Shalini Jain , Hariom Yadav and PR Sinha
Animal Biochemistry Division
National Dairy Research Institute
Karnal,Haryana
Definition
Allergy is an adverse immune reaction
to a molecule called allergen (protein)
in our environment, which is normally
harmless to the non-allergic person.
Types of Allergy
Classified according to symptoms they produce i.e.
skin, nose and lungs etc and causes:
 Skin allergy
 Food allergy
 Allergen inhalation
(Allergic rhinitis, Allergic asthma )
 Allergy to medicine
Risk factors of Allergy
• Family history of allergy - Allergies are hereditary which means
there is a genetic component to most allergies and passed from
parents to children.
• Exposure to allergens at certain times when the body's
defenses are lowered or weakened, such as after a viral
infection or during pregnancy, seems to contribute to the
development of allergies.
Allergen
An allergen - a substance causing allergic
disease in sensitized host. These allergens
enter into body by various means:
 Through the skin – cosmetics, stinging insects and
oak
 Injections – drugs
 Oral ingestion – Eggs, prawns, peanuts, fish, cow’s
milk
 Nose and lungs – airborne pollen of weeds, grasses,
dust mite droppings
Symptoms of Allergy
• Skin allergy symptoms include itching, reddening, and flaking
or peeling of the skin.
• Allergic rhinitis is characterized by congestion, itching and
discharge from the nose and itchy, watery eyes.
• Asthma include coughing, chest tightness, shortness of breath
and wheezing.
• Food allergy include, dizziness, lightheadedness or fainting
abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea or vomiting , anaphylaxis and
hives.
• A severe allergic reaction to food - called anaphylaxis.
Anaphylaxis include a feeling of warmth, flushing, tingling in
the mouth or a red, itchy rash. Other symptoms may include
feelings of light-headedness, shortness of breath, severe
sneezing, anexiety, stomach or uterine cramps, and/or vomiting
and diarrhea. In severe cases, patients may experience a drop
in blood pressure. Anaphylaxis can be fatal.
Treatment
• Avoidance or Environmental control - Avoiding foods that
have caused allergic reactions, removing the pet from the home,
dust should be removed from the surface of pillow covers and the
bed frame by vacuuming them weekly. Smoking indoors should
never be permitted.
• Pharmacologic management/Allergy medication - In food
allergy injection of adrenaline, antihistamines reduce the effects of
an allergic reaction by blocking histamine, Decongestants reduce
the nasal congestion, bronchodilators open the airways.
• Allergen immunotherapy Allergen immunotherapy is the
process of administering gradually increasing doses of allergens to
the patient.
• Functional foods - Currently, there is huge interest in the use of
foods which may exert a positive functional effect on our health. Two
of these ‘functional foods’ are known as probiotics and prebiotics,
both of which have a positive effect on the ‘good’ bacteria that reside
in our digestive systems, also known as our gut microflora.
• Yoga – Yoga is an alternative therapy for allergy.
Probiotics
Probiotics are friendly bacteria which have been
demonstrated to have beneficial effects on human
health and available in different forms like dairy
products- dahi, yogurt, capsules etc.
A probiotic may be defined as: ‘A preparation or product
containing viable, defined micro-organisms in sufficient
numbers, which alter the microflora of the host intestine
and, consuming by that, exert beneficial health effects on
the host’ (Schrezenmeier & De Vrese 2001). For example:
bifidus, lactobacillus.
Probiotics in Treatment of disease
Probiotics have been found to act as alternative
medicine for a number of diseases:
Lactose intolerance
Diarrhea
Constipation
Inflammatory bowel disease
Respiratory disease
Atherosclerosis
Osteoporosis
Allergy
Probiotics Role in Allergy
•
Lactobacillus GG have been reported to treat allergy (Majamaa
et al 1997) when administered to breast feeding mothers of
infants with atopic eczema/dermatitis due to allergy to milk.
• Lactobacillus GG may be effective in treating allergic diseases
if administered at birth and to pregnant mothers (Kalliomaki et
al 2001).
• Consumption of yogurt for a year reduced the symptoms of
nasal allergies among volunteers who consumed yogurt than in
control group (Trapp et al 1993).
How probiotics work to prevent allergy
To treat allergy, probiotic acts in different ways:
• Degradation/structural modification of enteral antigens.
• Normalization of the properties of aberrant indigenous
microbiota and of gut barrier functions.
• Regulation of the secretion of inflammatory mediators, and
promoting development of the immune system.
• Prevents food allergy by promoting endogenous barrier
mechanisms and alleviating intestinal inflammation.
• Stimulating immune response and reduction of serum IgE
levels.
• Reduction of Th2 cytokine response.
Intestinal
microflora
Probiotics
Epithelium
AP-Cell
IL-2
IL-12
TNF-α
IFN- γ
Th0
IL-4
Th1
Th2
IL-2
IL-10
Il-6
IFN-α
IFN-β
IgA
B
B
TNF-β
Virus
Tumors
IgE
Allergy
Future directions/ perspectives
• Future probiotics will have more thoroughly clarified
mechanisms to either control specific physiological processes
in the evolution of allergic disease or in their dietary
management. The modern view on probiotic therapy is based
on specific effects of clearly defined strains.
Conclusion
The term allergy encompasses a wide range of symptoms
and conditions. Although allergies cannot be prevented,
they can be treated and controlled. By making changes in
the environment and to their diets patients can greatly
limit exposure to certain allergens and reduce and control
their symptoms. If environmental control does not work,
medication, immunotherapy and alternative therapy can
help control the disease. Probiotics will offer consumers an
alternative to more invasive, medical means of treating
allergy, and provide a dietary means of optimizing health
and well-being.