Choice of paediatric medical nutrition in intestinal infections

Abstract

Acute intestinal infections are the most common cause of a diarrheal syndrome at an early age and represent a great challenge in paediatrics. Over one billion people suffer from acute infectious diarrhoea worldwide every year, of which 65–70% are children under 5 years of age. Along with pharmaceutical (etiotropic and pathogenetic) therapy, nutritional therapy is the most important part of the treatment of children suffering from acute intestinal infections, as the unbalanced and improperly selected nutrition may cause development of a long-lasting diarrheal syndrome resulting in a weight loss, lactase deficiency and some other unfavourable conditions. It is obvious that the issue of adequate nutrition becomes important in case of intestinal infections in children, as it should be easily digested and assimilated, replenishing energy and microbiocenotic losses. An early return to a normal nutrition ration helps reduce duration of the disease, speed up recovery in both functional and anatomical aspects. Today, there is a sufficiently large selection of products in the paediatric practice, which contribute, to one degree or another, to a balanced nutrition of children in the acute stage of the disease. Probiotic products hold a most unique position among these products. The article pays special attention to the baby foods produced by the Russian manufacturer, which is the leader in the Russian paediatric nutrition market and has been producing natural and healthy products for babies for about 30 years. The product line of this manufacturer includes a wide range of probiotic and functional products for patients of older age groups for the management of microbiota dysbiosis in acute intestinal infections.