New study shows that antibiotics given in late pregnancy can increase inflammatory bowel disease in
Here at Seeding Baby's Microbiome we believe that the initial seeding of a baby's microbiome at and around birth has huge implications for a baby's long term health.
In this study published in Cell Reports, alterations to the microbiome pre-birth are found to have long term effects;
A study by researchers at the University of Chicago Medicine shows that when mice that are genetically susceptible to developing inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) were given antibiotics during late pregnancy and the early nursing period, their offspring were more likely to develop an inflammatory condition of the colon that resembles human IBD.
The antibiotic treatment also caused lasting changes in the gut microbiome of mothers that were passed on to their offspring. While their offspring developed disease, adult mice given antibiotics did not see an increase in IBD. This suggests that the timing of antibiotic exposure is crucial, especially during the early developmental period after birth when the immune system is undergoing maturation.
"The newborn mice inherited a very altered, skewed population of microbes," said Eugene B. Chang, MD, Martin Boyer Professor of Medicine at the University of Chicago, Director of the Microbiome Medicine Program of the Microbiome Center, and senior author of the study, published this week in the journal Cell Reports. "None of the mothers developed IBD, but even though they had the same genetic background, the offspring with an altered microbiome during this critical period of immune development became highly susceptible to the development of colitis."
Chang cautioned, however, that these results from an animal study should not be taken as a reason for pregnant women or those nursing newborn infants to avoid antibiotics when they are needed to treat dangerous bacterial infections. Instead, he said, it should serve as a reminder that best practices dictate avoiding casual, indiscriminant over usage 'just to be safe', say, for a common cold that is most likely caused by a virus.
"Antibiotics should absolutely be used judiciously when they're indicated," Chang said. "But we as physicians should keep in mind the importance of antimicrobial stewardship, because this study suggests that it may have long term consequences that potentially impact health and risk for certain diseases."
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