SynthesisPediatric research2026
Efficacy and safety of probiotic/synbiotic supplementation for overweight or obese children: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
Synthesis in Pediatric research, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Pooled it
- Effects of probiotic supplementation on diabetic kidney disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Frontiers in microbiology · 2026Pooled it
- Gut Microbiome Responses to Nutritional and Lifestyle Interventions in Pediatric Obesity: A Systematic Review Toward Precision Nutrition.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe use of probiotics/synbiotic to assist in the treatment of overweight/obese children is currently a hot topic. However, the therapeutic effect is controversial. This meta-analysis assesses their effects and safety in overweight/obese children.
methodsPubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science, and Embase were searched (2000- April 2024) for RCTs on probiotics/synbiotics in overweight/obese children. Primary outcomes included anthropometric measures, lipid profiles, insulin sensitivity, inflammatory markers, and liver enzymes. Result stability and heterogeneity sources were assessed by sensitivity and subgroup analyses. Subgroup analyses were conducted based on age, intervention time, complications and treatment methods. Review Manager 5.4.1 and STATA 15.0 were used to conduct the statistical analysis.
resultsA total of 16 studies were included (n = 763). L. acidophilus is the most commonly used. We found significant reductions in BMI-z, CRP and TNF-α. Synbiotics/probiotics are more effective when the treatment lasted for more than 3 months or when the patients was under 12 years old. All indicators lost significance in patients with NAFLD.
conclusionsProbiotics/synbiotics significantly improved BMI-z, CRP, and TNF-α in overweight/obese children. Patients without complications under the age of 12 or those whose treatment lasts for more than 3 months will gain more benefits. IMPACT: This study found that probiotics/synbiotics could significantly improve BMI-Zscore, CRP, and TNF-α in overweight/obese children. This meta-analysis, incorporating the latest randomized controlled trials (RCTs), identified factors influencing probiotic/synbiotic efficacy through subgroup analysis: probiotic/synbiotic type, treatment duration, patient age, and the presence of complications. This study provides further evidence supporting the effectiveness of probiotics/synbiotics in treating overweight/obese children.
Indexed as
Identifiers
41102471What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.