Effects of Bifidobacterium longum BB536 and Bifidobacterium breve MCC1274 on Body Composition in Normal and Overweight Adults in Randomized Placebo-Controlled Study.

Visceral fat accumulation is considered to be associated with a higher risk of chronic diseases. We investigated the effects of Bifidobacterium longum subsp. longum (B. longum) BB536 and Bifidobacterium breve (B. breve) MCC1274 on body composition, including visceral fat, in a randomized, parallel-group, placebo-controlled study. Participants were between 29 and 64 years of age and had a body mass index (BMI) of greater than 23 and less than 30. One hundred participants were randomly assigned to the probiotics group or placebo group. Participants were administered probiotic capsules containing 1 × 1010 colony-forming units (CFUs) of B. longum BB536 and 5 × 109 CFU of B. breve MCC1274 or placebo capsules without bifidobacteria for 16 weeks. In the probiotics group, abdominal visceral fat area, total abdominal fat area, and serum triglyceride levels were significantly decreased compared to those in the placebo group. Additionally, the increase in BMI observed in the placebo group was significantly suppressed in the probiotics group. This study showed that B. longum BB536 and B. breve MCC1274 reduced abdominal visceral fat and total fat levels in healthy normal and overweight adults, suggesting their beneficial effects on body composition.

Effects of Bifidobacterium longum CLA8013 on bowel movement improvement: a placebo-controlled, randomized, double-blind study.

A placebo-controlled, randomized, double-blind study was conducted to evaluate the effect of taking 25 billion colony-forming units of heat-killed Bifidobacterium longum CLA8013 over 2 weeks on bowel movements in constipation-prone healthy individuals. The primary endpoint was the change in defecation frequency between the baseline and 2 weeks after the intake of B. longum CLA8013. The secondary endpoints were the number of days of defecation, stool volume, stool consistency, straining during defecation, pain during defecation, feeling of incomplete evacuation after defecation, abdominal bloating, fecal water content, and the Japanese version of the Patient Assessment of Constipation Quality of Life. A total of 120 individuals were assigned to two groups, 104 (control group, n=51; treatment group, n=53) of whom were included in the analysis. After 2 weeks of consuming the heat-killed B. longum CLA8013, defecation frequency increased significantly in the treatment group compared with that in the control group. Furthermore, compared with the control group, the treatment group showed a significant increase in stool volume and significant improvement in stool consistency, straining during defecation, and pain during defecation. No adverse events attributable to the heat-killed B. longum CLA8013 were observed during the study period. This study revealed that heat-killed B. longum CLA8013 improved the bowel movements of constipation-prone healthy individuals and confirmed that there were no relevant safety issues.