美国国家公共电台 NPR Probiotics For Babies And Kids? New Research Explores Good Bacteria

 

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

This year Americans will spend more than $2 billion on probiotics, supplements aimed at boosting what are called good bacteria inside us. One part of the market that's growing rapidly is probiotics for babies and kids. Here's NPR's Allison Aubrey.

ALLISON AUBREY, BYLINE¹: Like a lot of new moms, Courtney Becerra finds parenting to be full of surprises and worries.

COURTNEY BECERRA: I have a son named Wyatt. He is 7 months old.

AUBREY: One of her concerns was Wyatt's belly². His whole digestive system just seemed off and his skin was an issue, too. Early on, he got bad rashes and developed eczema.

BECERRA: He would scratch his stomach, and he would be fussy³ and whining⁴.

AUBREY: Now, when a friend of hers suggested that she try a probiotic marketed specifically for babies, she checked out the product's website and read about some of the research behind it. The gist⁵ of what she read is that the probiotic might help boost levels of bifidobacteria, which is thought to be protective.

BECERRA: I asked the pediatrician about starting the probiotics, and she gave me the go ahead.

AUBREY: Probiotics are generally considered safe, but the question is, do they really work to improve health? Courtney Becerra says in her experience, since Wyatt began the probiotic, he seems better. His G.I. system has calmed down, and his skin has cleared up, too. Now, this might be the result of a bunch of things she tried. For instance, she experimented with diet changes that could have altered her breast milk. She also used ointments⁶ to help Wyatt's skin. But her hunch⁷ is that the probiotic really did work.

BECERRA: As a mom, you want nothing but your baby to be healthy, and that's what I see now.

AUBREY: There are lots of people like Courtney Becerra who are now believers in probiotics. Daniel Merenstein is a family physician at Georgetown University. He says his patients ask about them all the time.

DANIEL MERENSTEIN: A high percentage of patients I see are already taking a probiotic or giving one to their kid.

AUBREY: Merenstein says there is evidence to show that probiotics can be useful for certain conditions in babies and kids.

MERENSTEIN: They definitely help for infantile colic, preventing some diarrhea, especially diarrhea caused by antibiotics⁸, certain diseases for kids, like ulcerative colitis, they've definitely been shown to help.

AUBREY: Now, a lot of the probiotic studies are small and funded by industry, and Merenstein says researchers still have a long way to go to figure out which strains and combinations of bacteria may be effective for which conditions.

MERENSTEIN: Just like antibiotics, different ones need to be used at different dosages and in different lengths for different diseases. There's no question that's how probiotics also work.

AUBREY: When it comes to cost and quality, not all probiotics are the same, and some could be just a waste of money. Probiotic supplements are not regulated the way pharmaceutical⁹ drugs are so the quality and dosing can vary from product to product or even batch¹⁰ to batch. Now, as for parents who are thinking of probiotics as part of a prevention strategy to give to their healthy kids the way you'd give, say, a multivitamin, Merenstein says he's skeptical¹¹.

MERENSTEIN: I don't think there's any evidence that you need to give a probiotic as a quote, unquote, "prevention."

AUBREY: But as the research continues to evolve, there will be more evidence to show how and when probiotics can help. Allison Aubrey, NPR News.

1 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

2 belly   

n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛

参考例句：

• The boss has a large belly.老板大腹便便。
• His eyes are bigger than his belly.他眼馋肚饱。

3 fussy   

adj.为琐事担忧的，过分装饰的，爱挑剔的

参考例句：

• He is fussy about the way his food's cooked.他过分计较食物的烹调。
• The little girl dislikes her fussy parents.小女孩讨厌她那过分操心的父母。

4 whining   

n. 抱怨，牢骚 v. 哭诉，发牢骚

参考例句：

• That's the way with you whining, puny, pitiful players. 你们这种又爱哭、又软弱、又可怜的赌棍就是这样。
• The dog sat outside the door whining (to be let in). 那条狗坐在门外狺狺叫着（要进来）。

5 gist   

n.要旨；梗概

参考例句：

• Can you give me the gist of this report?你能告诉我这个报告的要点吗？
• He is quick in grasping the gist of a book.他敏于了解书的要点。

6 ointments   

n.软膏( ointment的名词复数 )；扫兴的人；煞风景的事物；药膏

参考例句：

• The firm has been dispensing ointments. 本公司配制药膏。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Antibiotic ointments are useful for concurrent bacterial infections. 抗菌素软膏对伴发的细菌感染是有用的。 来自辞典例句

7 hunch   

n.预感，直觉

参考例句：

• I have a hunch that he didn't really want to go.我有这么一种感觉，他并不真正想去。
• I had a hunch that Susan and I would work well together.我有预感和苏珊共事会很融洽。

8 antibiotics   

n.（用作复数）抗生素；（用作单数）抗生物质的研究；抗生素，抗菌素( antibiotic的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• the discovery of antibiotics in the 20th century 20世纪抗生素的发现
• The doctor gave me a prescription for antibiotics. 医生给我开了抗生素。

9 pharmaceutical   

adj.药学的，药物的；药用的，药剂师的

参考例句：

• She has donated money to establish a pharmaceutical laboratory.她捐款成立了一个药剂实验室。
• We are engaged in a legal tussle with a large pharmaceutical company.我们正同一家大制药公司闹法律纠纷。

10 batch   

n.一批(组，群)；一批生产量

参考例句：

• The first batch of cakes was burnt.第一炉蛋糕烤焦了。
• I have a batch of letters to answer.我有一批信要回复。

11 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。