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Evidence-Based Supplement Research
Evidence-Based Supplement Research

Lactobacillus reuteri DSM 17938 and Reduced Abdominal Pain

Research synthesisModerate evidenceSmall effect13 studies · 11 beneficial · 2 neutral · 0 harmful

Across 13 studies, 11 reported beneficial effects of Lactobacillus reuteri DSM 17938 on reducing abdominal pain, with effect sizes predominantly small to moderate. The most commonly studied dose was 10^8 CFU/day, and the median study duration across 5 reporting studies was 56 days (8 weeks). Effects were observed primarily in pediatric clinical populations, including children with functional abdominal pain and infants with colic.

  • Effective dose range: 10^8 CFU/day
  • Studied populations: Children with functional abdominal pain (age 4-18 years), infants with colic, children with functional constipation

Caveats: Available evidence is overwhelmingly positive — clinical literature in this area is subject to publication bias (null-result studies are less likely to be published or indexed). Two neutral studies (RCTs with evidence scores of 7 and 6) reported no significant differences versus placebo, suggesting the effect may be inconsistent or context-dependent. Many studies had small sample sizes, and effect sizes varied from small to large across trials.

Generated Jun 21, 2026
Doses used in studies
  • CFU/day: 100 million–400 million (median 100 million, IQR 100 million175 million) 4 studies
  • CFU single-dose: 200 million (median 200 million, IQR 200 million200 million) 1 study
  • drops/day: 5 (median 5, IQR 55) 1 study
Time to effect
Median: 8 weeks · IQR 6 weeks2.8 months · Range 4 weeks4 months — Reported in 5 of 13 studies
Safety in these studies
13 of 13 papers
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