Flavia Indrio – författare

This book shows the huge impact the gut microbiota has on the gastrointestinal health of humans with a particular focus on children. It also highlights the potential use of probiotic microorganisms to protect or improve children’s gastrointestinal health.

Humans are not single organisms: We are a multi-organism structure composed of ourselves and our microbiota, living in close symbiosis since birth and even before. The huge impact that the billons of microscopic cells living in our gut have on our gastrointestinal and systemic health cannot be overestimated. The enormous progress that has been made in the past decade in our still very incomplete understanding of the gut microbiota is opening the door to potential applications in human health that were simply unthinkable before.

The topics addressed in this book are spanning from the development of the gut microbiota in the fetus and newborn all the way to current and potential applications in disparate conditions such as necrotizing enterocolitis, or infectious, or inflammatory conditions affecting the child. 

The book is written in a rigorous, evidence based manner by an international group of outstanding experts in these fields and is aimed at pediatric gastroenterologists, pediatricians and physician scientists alike.

This fully updated second edition demonstrates the major impact that the gut microbiota has on human gastrointestinal health, with a special focus on children. The book also explores the potential use of probiotic microorganisms to protect or improve gastrointestinal health in children.

Humans are not a single organism: We are a multi-organic structure composed of ourselves and our microbiota, living in close symbiosis since birth and even before. The enormous impact that the billions of microscopic cells in our gut have on our gastrointestinal and systemic health cannot be overstated. The tremendous progress that has been made in the last decade in our still very incomplete understanding of the gut microbiota opens the door to potential applications in human health that were simply unthinkable before.

One of the most interesting aspects of this new scientific horizon is the fact that we can identify (or even create in the lab) many of these "friendly bacteria" and use themto protect or improve our health. Thus, strains of probiotic microorganisms are being identified and studied in a variety of clinical scenarios. One of the most studied areas for probiotics is pediatric gastrointestinal health.

Topics covered in this book range from the development of the intestinal microbiota in the fetus and neonate to current and potential applications in various conditions such as necrotizing enterocolitis or infectious or inflammatory diseases of the child.

Written by an international group of preeminent experts in these fields in a rigorous, evidence-based manner, the book is intended for pediatric gastroenterologists, pediatricians, and medical scientists alike.