Through the years, mastitis, an infection of breast tissue that mostly occurs in breastfeeding mothers, has typically been treated by a course of antibiotics. However, more recently, probiotics have been shown to be a better alternative.
Doctors from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid, studied a group of 352 with symptoms of mastitis. One group of women was given lactobacilli and the other, various forms of antibiotics, including amoxicillin, cotrimoxazole, and erythromycin.
By Day 21, the women in the probiotics group had significantly lower bacterial counts than their antibiotic taking counterparts.The mastitis returned in 30.7% of the antibiotics patients as opposed to 17.6% of the probiotics group.
The side effects?The women who received probiotics reported flatulence where women in the antibiotics group reported increased incidence of vaginal candidiasis.
It appears that probiotics are an efficient, more convenient, alternative for the treatment of mastitis.
What great news for nursing mothers!