Oral Probiotic Lactobacillus paracasei Improves Dandruff
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Daily consumption of the oral probiotic Lactobacillus paracasei for 2 months led to a significant decrease in both scalp adherent and free dandruff among 30 healthy men with moderate to severe dandruff, according to data presented at the 39th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Dermatological Research, held September 9 to 12, 2009, in Budapest, Hungary.
Participants in the double-blind trial were randomized to treatment with L. paracasei (109 CFU/day) or placebo. After 2 months, men in the treatment group had a 70% reduction from baseline in their standardized free dandruff score (vs 23% in the placebo group) and a 72% decrease in adherent dandruff (vs 34% in the placebo group). Scalp erythema (as assessed by a dermatologist) was reduced by 58% in the treatment group and 31% in the placebo group. Total Malassezia yeast counts decreased significantly in the treatment group vs the placebo group.
At the end of the study, greater numbers of participants in the treatment group (compared with the placebo group) reported having less dandruff (57% vs 16%, respectively), less scalp pruritus (47% vs 13%), and less scalp erythema (72% vs 43%).
Author: Cynthia Knapp Dlugosz, BPharm
Date: November, 2009