Study shows chicory root fibres provide improved digestive health in young children

PARSIPPANY, NJ—A recently published scientific study by Professor Tamás Decsi and Szminoetta Lohner at the Department of Paediatrics, University of Pécs, Hungary states that children aged three to six gain important health benefits from the consumption of chicory root fibres.

While previous studies have demonstrated a strengthening of the natural defence system on infants and children between birth and two years of age, this this is the first time evidence has been established for the three- to six-year-old age group.

The human intervention study, which examined the supplementation of a daily dosage of six grams of chicory root fibre during the autumn and winter period, demonstrated various health benefits among children. These include improved gut microbiota composition, softer stools in a normal range and fewer incidents of infections in the group of children.

The study, conducted over six months with a double-blind, placebo controlled design, also confirmed that chicory root fibre was very well tolerated.

Regular intake of a dedicated composition of chicory root fibre, a variant of BENEO’s Orafti inulin, was found to support the gut microbiota of the children by increasing bifidobacterial and lactobacilli numbers, which resulted in lower numbers of fever episodes requiring a physician’s consultation and sinusitis in kindergarten children. In addition, the positive effect on digestive health was further supported by a softer stool consistency.

This latest research highlights that the risk of acute infections can be reduced by incorporating chicory root fiber into the daily diet of children to strengthen their defence forces and improve digestive health.

BENEO vice-president regulatory affairs and nutrition communication Anke Sentko states: “This study demonstrates the importance of healthy, prevention orientated eating in this age group. By making small adjustments to your daily choices you can achieve significant improvements to your health status, from very early on. It also shows, once again, that microbiota composition matters. With the chicory root fibre used in this study, we can strengthen natural defence forces. These are very exciting results that can be achieved by Orafti inulin dietary fibres.”

The BENEO-Institute is an organization which brings together BENEO’s expertise from Nutrition Science and Legislation teams. It acts as an advisory body for customers and partners reaching from ingredient approval, physiological effects and nutritional composition to communication and labelling.

For further information on BENEO and its ingredients, visit: www.beneo.com and www.beneonews.com.