Breastfeeding and natural colonization with Lactobacillus spp as protection against rotavirus-associated diarrhea.

Group A human rotavirus (HRV) is the leading cause of severe diarrhea among infants and young children throughout the world (Parashar et al. 2003). Each year, HRV causes approximately 111 million episodes of gastroenteritis, 2 million hospitalizations, and an estimated 352,000 to 592,000 deaths in children under 5 years of age. The lower incidence of disease in breastfed infants may be due to a variety of reasons, but the most important determinant may be the composition of bioactive protective factors in human milk. These protective factors can be grouped into those that: (a) inhibit attachment and invasion of pathogens, such as secretory antibodies, multifunctional agents, including fatty acids and lactoferrin, and homologs of host cell-surface glycoconjugates; and (b) factors that promote development of the infant’s enteric flora (Newburg 2000).