How FOS can help your baby to grow well

Ask any parent, the number one wish for their baby is for them to grow well and be happy! Indeed, parenting is a journey with many hiccups and bumps on the road but the sound and visual of a happy, healthy, giggling baby is every parent’s wish! What if we tell you that a fibre is one of the many nutrients your child requires for overall growth and development?

The Helpful Fibre

Everyone knows that fibre is one such nutrient that is not digested in the stomach. It reaches our gut as it is! How then, can a fibre help a child to grow well? We are talking about the plant-based fibre called FOS or or fructooligosaccharides (Fruc-toh-oli-go-sack-a-rides). They are found naturally in foods such as apples, tomatoes, honey, wheat, and bananas. 1, 2 Read on to know how this natural fibre is super beneficial for babies.

What does FOS do for my baby?

FOS provides well-rounded benefit for your baby! Being a fibre, FOS 3-7

  • keeps your child’s tummy healthy,
  • helps your baby to poop normally,
  • reduces or prevents frequent doc visits,
  • keeps your baby happy,
  • keeps their bones strong

Wow such a long list of benefits from a nutrient that doesn’t even get digested! We reveal the secret on how FOS does this below.

How does FOS achieve this feat?

The major point lies in the very fact we discussed, escaping digestion in the stomach. FOS reaches your baby’s intestines intact and it is here the magic begins. Your baby’s gut has a mix of both good and bad bacteria. All of us want the numbers of bad bacteria to be lower so that there are lower infections and sick episodes. 4

FOS does exactly this! It increases the numbers of good bacteria and reduces the numbers of bad ones. This gives your baby a major immunity boost! Lesser illness means lesser doctor visits! Good bacteria in the tummy also means your baby doesn’t have tummy-ache or discomfort often. The result is a happy, satisfied baby that is smiling and growing well! 5

FOS also helps to ease constipation or hard poop. We have a detailed blog on how FOS helps with constipation but in short, FOS absorbs water and more water makes your baby’s potty soft. 3

FOS and Strong bones

FOS can also help your baby absorb bone-building minerals from the food. A healthy tummy is important for absorbing essential vitamins and minerals. The good bacteria are also known to produce some vitamins important for good health of your baby! 6

A lot of information now reveals the importance of a healthy tummy for a healthy life. Breastfeeding the best when it comes to nourishing your baby. Hence paediatricians recommend exclusively breastfeeding infants until 6 months of age.

Happy parenting everyone!

 

References

  1. Sabater-Molina M, Larqué E, Torrella F, Zamora S. Dietary fructooligosaccharides and potential benefits on health. J Physiol Biochem. 2009;65(3):315-28.
  2. Ibrahim O. Technological Aspects of Fructo-Oligosaccharides (FOS), Production Processes, Physiological Properties, Applications and Health Benefits. J Food Chem Nanotechnol. 2021;7(2): 41-46.
  3. Oku T and Nakamura S. Fructooligosaccharide: Metabolism through Gut Microbiota and Prebiotic Effect. Food Nutr J. 2017;2:128.
  4. Sabater-Molina M, Larqué E, Torrella F, Zamora S. Dietary fructooligosaccharides and potential benefits on health. J Physiol Biochem. 2009;65(3):315-28.
  5. Tandon D, Haque MM, Gote M, Jain M, Bhaduri A, Dubey AK, Mande SS. A prospective randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, dose-response relationship study to investigate efficacy of fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS) on human gut microflora. Sci Rep. 2019 Apr 2;9(1):5473. doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-41837-3. PMID: 30940833; PMCID: PMC6445088.
  6. Costa G, Vasconcelos Q, Abreu G, Albuquerque A, Vilarejo J, Aragão G. Changes in nutrient absorption in children and adolescents caused by fructans, especially fructooligosaccharides and inulin. Arch Pediatr. 2020;27(3):166-169.
  7. Juffrie M. Fructooligosaccharide and Diarrhea. Biosci Microflora. 2002; 21 (1): 31-34.