Effects of Lactoferrin on Prevention of Acute Gastrointestinal Symptoms in Winter: A Randomized, Double-Blinded, Placebo-Controlled Trial for Staff of Kindergartens and Nursery Schools in Japan

• Published in: International journal of environmental research and public health Vol. 17; no. 24; p. 9582
• Main Authors: Mizuki, Masaru, Tsukahara, Teruomi, Oda, Hirotsugu, Tanaka, Miyuki, Yamauchi, Koji, Abe, Fumiaki, Nomiyama, Tetsuo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 21.12.2020; MDPI
• Subjects: Adult; Anti-Infective Agents - therapeutic use; Day care centers; Double-Blind Method; Female; Food products; Gastroenteritis; Gastrointestinal Diseases - drug therapy; Gastrointestinal Diseases - epidemiology; Gastrointestinal Diseases - prevention & control; Gastrointestinal symptoms; Health care; Humans; Infectious diseases; Informed consent; Japan - epidemiology; Lactoferrin; Lactoferrin - therapeutic use; Milk; Preventive medicine; Public health; Questionnaires; Schools; Schools, Nursery; Small intestine; Statistical analysis; Trends; Winter; Japan; lactoferrin; subjective acute gastrointestinal symptoms; winter; kindergarten; diarrhea
• ISSN: 1660-4601; 1661-7827; 1660-4601
• DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17249582

This study investigated the preventive effects of lactoferrin (LF) on subjective acute gastrointestinal symptoms during the winter in a randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled parallel-group comparative trial. The eligible subjects were healthy adults working at kindergartens and nursery schools. We randomized the subjects to the Placebo group (0 mg/day), the Low LF group (200 mg/day), and the High LF group (600 mg/day) for 12 weeks. The prevalence of acute gastrointestinal symptoms was significantly lower in the High LF (13/112 vs. 26/116; = 0.030) and the Low LF (13/107 vs. 26/116; = 0.040) groups than in the Placebo group. The adjusted odds ratio for the prevalence of acute gastrointestinal symptoms was 2.78 (95% CI: 1.19-6.47) in the Placebo group compared with the High LF group. LF is useful to prevent acute gastrointestinal symptoms among childcare workers, who mainly consist of women.