Is Your Baby’s Gut Health in the Green Zone?

Is good baby gut health as simple as finding the right baby probiotic?

Not so fast. As it turns out, not every baby needs a probiotic. But if they do? Then it’s really important to make sure that they get the right one.

How important is it?

We’re talking about problems that can span into adulthood, and have roots in infancy. This includes conditions like:

• Colic
• Frequent waking at night
• Baby eczema
• Food allergies
• Asthma
• Type 1 diabetes
• Obesity later in life
• Colitis, or inflammation of the large intestine

Many of these conditions are linked to immune health…

Because you know what they say: A full 80% of the immune system is found in the gut [1],[2]. So if you want to give your baby strong immune health, then it starts in the gut.

And it starts within a child’s first 1000 days.

A baby’s first 1000 days impact lifelong health

From conception until about 3 years old, roughly 1000 days, a lot of important development takes place. Of course, good baby nutrition matters. But even positive social relationships during the first 1000 days make an impact on future well-being.

And baby gut health? It’s huge.

Interruptions of early gut development – for example, antibiotic use – can impact the bacteria living in your baby’s gut, otherwise known as the microbiome. Then what happens? Research shows that this may disrupt immune development and can lead to chronic disease [3].

Ugh.

This is hard news. Because things that interfere with baby gut health and the first 1000 days – well, often there’s no way around them.

Let’s dive into this a little more. Then, we’ll get to everyone’s favorite part: Remedies!

Poor baby gut health may lead to eczema, food allergies, and asthma

Did you know that at least 40% of American school-aged kids have at least one chronic health condition? [4]

And we can break this down a little more:

• 8% of children have allergies [5]
• 30% have eczema [6]
• 7% have asthma [7]

Does this mean that allergies are the new norm? You and I both know that just because it’s normal, doesn’t mean it’s healthy.

So what’s really going on?

As it turns out, there’s a powerful connection between baby gut health and the risk of immune disorders [8]. Like eczema and allergies.

Early gut health relies on good bacteria from mom. Remember, the first 1000 days include pregnancy. So, this means that the first bacteria a baby is exposed to takes place during pregnancy, birth, and feeding [9].

This first exposure can either protect or disrupt immune development [3], [10].

But, guess what?

Even if a baby is vaginally born and breastfed, this doesn’t guarantee a healthy baby gut! It’s a head-scratcher, but think about it. There are so many factors – including genetics and family history – that play a role in gut health.

The good news is that we can turn things around.

For example, C-section delivery can leave what’s called a “C-section microbial signature.” If this signature sticks around past 12 months old, then there’s a 3x increased risk of developing asthma by 6 years old.

But, get the gut in a “healthy range” by 12 months old, and this risk drops in a big way [11].

No blame! This is why we gut test

Bottom line: It’s impossible to know your baby’s gut health without testing.

Do you want to do everything possible to protect your baby’s gut health and keep it in the green zone?

Do you want to give your kid strong immune health later in life?

Then baby gut health testing is the best way to understand what’s really going on.

So much immune development takes place early in life. This means that:

• If you’re pregnant, then it’s important to test your gut health too!
• You want to catch a snapshot of your baby’s gut within the first weeks of life
• It may be helpful to re-sample your baby’s gut at 3 months old and 6 months old

Tiny Health family microbiome testing offers the only gut test for babies.

Tiny Health gives parents a comprehensive snapshot using accurate technology that you can trust, known as shotgun sequencing.

This way, parents can track gut biomarkers for things like eczema, allergies, asthma, and metabolic disorders – before they ever become a problem!

You CAN change your baby’s gut health with the right probiotic

The good news is that once you know what you’re looking for, restoring baby gut health can be as simple as selecting the right probiotic.

Good gut health means that your baby has plenty of Bifidobacterium species.

And what you’re really looking for is some B. infantis, since this species is really good at:

• Digesting the sugar in breastmilk and (some) formulas, called HMOs
• Keeping the gut healthy
• Making the immune system strong

Mama Natural Baby Probiotic Drops include B. infantis, along with other important Bifidobacterium species.

Wondering if you can change your baby’s gut health with the right Bifidobacterium species?

This screenshot shows the impact you can have in a couple of months, during a critical time of immune development.

The green zone for Bifidobacterium species will change throughout a child’s first 1000 days. So this is why it’s important to test… and make sure you’re hitting that sweet spot of “just right.”

References

[1] G. Vighi, F. Marcucci, L. Sensi, G. D. Cara, and F. Frati, “Allergy and the gastrointestinal system,” Clin Exp Immunol, vol. 153, no. Supplement_1, pp. 3–6, 2008, doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2249.2008.03713.x.
[2] S. J. Keppler, M. C. Goess, and J. M. Heinze, “The Wanderings of Gut-Derived IgA Plasma Cells: Impact on Systemic Immune Responses,” Front Immunol, vol. 12, p. 670290, 2021, doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.670290.
[3] A. Uzan-Yulzari et al., “Neonatal antibiotic exposure impairs child growth during the first six years of life by perturbing intestinal microbial colonization,” Nat Commun, vol. 12, no. 1, p. 443, 2021, doi: 10.1038/s41467-020-20495-4.
[4] “Managing Chronic Health Conditions.” https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/chronicconditions.htm (accessed Sep. 19, 2022).
[5] “CDC Allergies and Hay Fever.” https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/allergies.htm (accessed Sep. 21, 2022).
[6] “Eczema Stats.” https://nationaleczema.org/research/eczema-facts/ (accessed Sep. 21, 2022).
[7] “CDC Asthma in children.” https://www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns/childhood-asthma/index.html (accessed Sep. 21, 2022).
[8] H. Renz et al., “The neonatal window of opportunity—early priming for life,” J Allergy Clin Immun, vol. 141, no. 4, pp. 1212–1214, 2018, doi: 10.1016/j.jaci.2017.11.019.
[9] S. Tamburini, N. Shen, H. C. Wu, and J. C. Clemente, “The microbiome in early life: implications for health outcomes,” Nat Med, vol. 22, no. 7, pp. 713–722, 2016, doi: 10.1038/nm.4142.
[10] M. Dzidic, A. Boix-Amorós, M. Selma-Royo, A. Mira, and M. C. Collado, “Gut Microbiota and Mucosal Immunity in the Neonate,” Medical Sci, vol. 6, no. 3, p. 56, 2018, doi: 10.3390/medsci6030056.
[11] J. Stokholm et al., “Delivery mode and gut microbial changes correlate with an increased risk of childhood asthma,” Sci Transl Med, vol. 12, no. 569, p. eaax9929, 2020, doi: 10.1126/scitranslmed.aax9929.