Bifidobacterium breve

B. breve

Snapshot

Indications	Contraindications
Cognitive function in older adults¹ Aspirin-induced gastric damage² Sleep and mood with high anxiety³ Glycemic control in type 2 diabetes⁴ Body fat reduction⁵ Infant gut health⁶	Immune-compromised conditions⁷ Fever or bloody diarrhoea⁷ Milk or soy allergy⁸

Bifidobacterium breve is a species that dominates the gut of breastfed infants, and strain-specific preparations are taken to shape the gut microbiota and immune signaling. Supplementation is used for cognitive function in older adults with suspected mild cognitive impairment or memory complaints⁹. It is also used for mood and sleep in adults with high anxiety and for protecting the stomach during aspirin therapy. In infants, strains are used in preterm neonates¹⁰ and for paediatric gut disorders⁶.

Evidence is strain-specific and often null.^{10, 11} A systematic review found no benefit of one strain in randomized preterm trials, and a large phase 3 trial found no reduction in necrotizing enterocolitis, sepsis, or death^{10, 11}. A trial in quiescent ulcerative colitis stopped for lack of efficacy¹². In older adults, cognitive gains appeared only on some subscales¹. A 2023 observational study in patients with non-small cell lung cancer linked detectable fecal B. breve at baseline to longer progression-free survival on immunotherapy with chemotherapy; no trial has tested supplementation for this¹³. Capsules, powders, and liquids, single-strain or multi-strain, are marketed among many products listing Bifidobacterium breve; see Form comparison.

Health Canada lists immune-compromised conditions as a contraindication on most licensed single-ingredient products⁷. Those labels also direct users with fever, vomiting, bloody diarrhoea, or severe abdominal pain to consult a practitioner before use⁷.

Last updated October 16, 2026. Read how we make monographs.

In the full monograph

51 sources, 44 studies

When to useThe situations practitioners use it for, each with the reason and the study behind it.
SafetyWho should avoid it, who needs extra care, and the side effects reported in studies.
InteractionsThe medicines and supplements it interacts with, the effect of each, and what labeling says to watch.
Protocol notesThe doses used in studies, how and when they were taken, and how the forms on the market compare.
How it worksWhat it is and how it works in the body, in plain terms.
Published studiesThe studies behind each use, popular claims checked against them, and trials still under way.
Word of mouthWhat patients and practitioners report online, kept separate from the clinical evidence.
Clinical perspectiveA closing read of where the evidence is solid, where it is thin, and what has not been studied.

Snapshot

In the full monograph

Sources