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Abstract

It is quite humbling to know that most of the cells in our bodies are bacterial cells. Moreover, ?Bacterial System? is the largest organ in our body! There are more than a thousand different species in our body that lives in harmony with us. It is there for a noble reason; that is helping us to stay healthy. The science of probiotics is mounting exponentially. There is a huge amount of research being done all over the world to demystify this unique system. The role of probiotics in shaping the immune system and the critical time of this conditioning are impressive. Moreover, it is shown that probiotics has a role in various gastrointestinal disorders, for example diarrheal illnesses whether that is infectious (Rota, C. diff etc) or antibiotic induced or even inflammatory in nature like Inflammatory bowel disease. Practicing pediatricians are frequently faced with infants? with GI intolerance like colic, excessive gases and constipation; several studies had shown that certain probiotics can improve such symptoms. Spore forming probiotic (e.g. B. clausii) may have an additional advantage of being acid and antibiotic resistant. Hostile environment like birth by cesarean section, formula fed, frequent use of antibiotics or maternal severe chronic illness my affect the probiotic milieu negatively. These kinds of patients may benefit from restoring their bacterial system. Guidelines endorsed by International societies and metanalysis studies will be presented and discussed in length during my presentation; keeping in mind the large number of different probiotics and the substantial differences in methodology used in these studies.

Biography

Mohamad Miqdady is American Board certified in Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition. He is the Division Chief, Ped. GI, Hepatology & Nutrition Division at Sheikh Khalifa Medical City in UAE and also an Adjunct Staff at Cleveland Clinic, Ohio USA. He completed his Fellowship in Pediatric Gastroenterology at Baylor College of Medicine & Texas Children?s Hospital in Houston, TX, USA. His main research interests include feeding difficulties, picky eating, obesity, procedural sedation, allergic GI disorders and celiac disease. He has several publications and authored few book chapters.