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The Measuring the Influence of Kefir (MILK) Study

Daniel J. Merenstein, MD; Jennifer Foster, BA; Frank D’Amico, PhD

Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2009;163(8):750-754.

Objective  To examine the role of commercially available kefir, a fermented milk similar to yogurt but containing different fermentation microbes, in preventing antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD). Probiotics have shown some promise in preventing AAD.

Design  A double-blinded randomized placebo-controlled allocation concealment clinical trial.

Setting  Primary care patients in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area.

Participants  A total of 125 children aged 1 to 5 years presenting to primary care physicians.

Intervention  Kefir drink or heat-killed matching placebo.

Main Outcome Measure  The primary outcome was the incidence of diarrhea during the 14-day follow-up period in children receiving antibiotics.

Results  There were no differences in the rates of diarrhea per group, with 18% in the active group and 21.9% in the placebo group (relative risk, 0.82; 95% confidence interval, 0.54-1.43). Additionally, there were no differences in any secondary outcomes among the groups. However, there were some interesting interactions among initial health at enrollment, age of participants, and sex that require further study.

Conclusions  In our trial, kefir did not prevent AAD. Further independent research on the potential of kefir needs to be conducted.

Trial Registration  clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00481507

Author Affiliations: Department of Family Medicine, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC (Dr Merenstein and Ms Foster); University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, St Margaret's Hospital, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Dr D’Amico).

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