Could a probiotic ease autism symptoms? new study investigates
NCT ID NCT03514784
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Sep 15, 2026 · Updated 3 times
Summary
This study tested a probiotic (BB-12 with LGG) in 123 children with autism and stomach problems. The goal was to see if different doses are safe and can improve behavior and gut health. Researchers tracked side effects, behavior changes, and gut bacteria over 56 days of treatment plus 28 days of follow-up.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 1/2
Runs two stages together: safety and dose first, then whether the treatment works.
- Participants
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100 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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May 2016
- Finished
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Jul 2025
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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4 to 16 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Healthy children with autism spectrum disorders (4 - 16 years old) and gastrointestinal symptoms, based on the GI Severity Index, with no other recognized illness will be enrolled in this study. There will be no selection on the basis of age, race, or gender. Although the investigators anticipate the majority of subjects will be male and/or pre-pubertal, in females of childbearing potential, a pregnancy test (urine) will be performed on females participating (at each visit). Exclusion Criteria: * Pregnancy or breastfeeding * Subjects taking immunosuppressive medications, including oral corticosteroids * A History of Positive result of HIV, Hepatitis B, and/or Hepatitis C test * Abnormal lab test results (Section 5.2) * Gastrointestinal diseases such as celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease * Subjects with an allergy to antibiotics * Presence of fever or a pre-existing adverse event monitored in the study * Use of probiotics in the last 30 days * Acute diarrheal illness within the past 30 days * Recent (within 2 weeks) or current use of oral antibiotics /anti-fungals Current use of oral laxatives * Subjects with implanted prosthetic devices including prosthetic heart valves * The investigators will require that subject not take any other probiotic-containing products, including yogurt supplemented with probiotics during the study period.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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UTHealth
Houston, Texas, 77030, United States
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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