Here is a portion of an interesting article on probiotics and some of their uses.

http://www.naturalproductsinsider.com/articles/2009/09/probiotics-populate-ne...


Probiotics Populate New Markets

Now that people are beginning to understand how good bacteria can contribute to good health, the demand for these live ingredients is rising. Probiotics have long been ingested either in yogurt or dietary supplements but, as has been the case when other popular ingredients hit the masses, customers want more choices. Sensitivities to certain aspects of processing, including temperature, have limited the types of finished products that could realistically deliver viable probiotic ingredients; however, emerging technologies are removing these obstacles and opening the market up for more interesting probiotic-containing goods.

To a 5-year old the world is filled with good guys and bad guys, and things are either one side or the other. In the world of bacteria, there are also good and bad strains, and the same simplicity of division applies. The more good guys there are and the fewer bad guys, the better the world is—a theory that rings as true to a child as it does to probiotic science.

It’s this simple message that has lured the public to learn about and consume more beneficial bacteria. Natural Marketing Institute’s (NMI) 2008 Health and Wellness Trends Survey found awareness of the term “probiotics” in the general U.S. population skyrocketed in 2008 to 48 percent, up from 31 percent in 2007. This followed a 50-percent increase in 2007 from only 20 percent awareness in 2006.

Dannon capitalized early with its Activia™ yogurt, featuring a Bifidobacteria strain branded to reflect the ability of such probiotics to regulate digestion. Other companies launched similar yogurt products focused on probiotic content, and work was already underway to find some new applications for these probiotics beyond traditionally cultured foods.

Despite this push, consumers won’t take just any probiotic-infused product. Euromonitor reported a cheese product featuring Kraft’s LiveActive probiotic ingredient drew little fanfare, because consumers shop for cheese in a special way, focusing on taste, texture, price and convenience, and they are not looking to pay extra for cheese with probiotics.

On the flip side, oral health products seem a good fit for probiotics. As any dentist worth his weight in white smiles will tell you, harmful bacteria are all over the mouth, gums and teeth, contributing to erosion of tooth enamel and periodontal disease. Among oral health products, gums and mints have enjoyed the largest growth, with functional gum climbing 10 percent between 2007 and 2008, for a total $5.7 billion market share.

“In general, consumers tend to understand that harmful bacteria reside in the mouth,” said Jeffrey Hillman, DMD, Ph.D., chief scientific officer for Oragenics, adding this awareness has been supported by products that claim to kill 99 percent of the germs that cause bad breath. “What is now emerging in consumer education is the critical role ‘good bacteria’ plays in maintaining and restoring optimal health.”

Lactobacillus strains are effective against enamel-eroding bacteria, such as Streptococcus mutans , and many companies are already active in developing probiotic gums and mints with this family of probiotics. A sugar-free gum containing Lactobacillus reuteri (L. reuteri) is a recent offering from Swedish company BioGia. Also, Relief Mart offers Breath-Biotics™, a mint containing a proprietary blend of L.reuteri, L. plantarum, L. rhamnosis and L.acidophilus that targets the bacteria that causes bad breath.

“Nutraceutix Inc. also developed several probiotic breath mints designed for improved oral health, one of which is currently undergoing an academic medical center study. Tim Gamble, senior VP, sales and marketing, Nutraceutix, said the mints feature the company’s LiveBac® processing, which improves shelf-life for probiotic tablets and caplets regardless of the particular strains involved, even at room temperature. They are expected to hit store shelves soon under national brands.”

Similarly, Oragenics developed a mint (EvoraPlus®) featuring three probiotic strains designed to fight dental decay and bad breath. This breath mint contains the company’s Probiora3 branded probiotic blend—Streptococcus oralis (S. oralis KJ3™), Streptococcus uberis (S. uberis KJ2™) and Streptococcus rattus (S. rattus JH145™).

Hillman said probiotics for oral care is a new category and requires unique bacteria that are natural residents in healthy mouths. “Although both sets of bacterial strains are classified as lactic acid bacteria, the bacteria in yogurt (and all gut probiotic products) are not residents of the oral cavity, and they won't hang around long in the mouth,” he explained. “Twenty-five years of data shown in studies prove that the specific organisms we patented as ProBiora3 have exerted a beneficial activity in the mouth.”

Hillman also suggested a whitening effect, noting his company’s trademarked strain of Streptococcus oralis binds to the surface of the teeth, crowding out harmful bacteria by competing for the same nutrients and surface spaces. “In laboratory studies, the low-dose hydrogen peroxide produced by the S. oralis KJ3TM created a continuous whitening benefit that did not plateau over the duration of the study,” he said, adding the ingredient also contains S. uberis KJ2 and S. rattus JH145.

Bacteria Everywhere

Altered microflora balance in the body, which is home to more than 1014 bacteria, is associated with health problems and diseases. This is more well-known relative to the digestion system, which hosts more than 400 different bacterial species in the intestines, including both good and bad bacteria competing for receptor sites. The prevailing theory is the good bugs can crowd out the bad bugs from these receptors, decreasing the negative effects harmful bacteria can have. In the digestive tract, probiotic ingestion has translated to positive effects on diarrhea, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), lactose indigestion, irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), H. pylori colonization (linked to ulcers) and colon cancer.

However, bacteria are all over the body, including the mouth, skin, reproductive organs and various membranes. Thus besides digestive ailments, probiotic supplementation has been associated with allergies, autism, arthritis, and various liver and kidney diseases.

Another area of health not often considered digestive is immunity, which is linked to gut health. The intestinal epithelial layer contains certain lymphoid tissue called lamina propria, which interacts with gut microflora. Recent research has shown probiotics can have positive effects on cold and flu symptoms, allergic rhinitis and pollen allergies. While not definitive, the study being done on probiotics in this are of health has been drawing attention from product developers and formulators.

In fact, if a good offense needs a strong defense, a top growth segment for probiotics may be in immune defense. “Research is showing that probiotics can positively modify immune response,” said Michael Shahani, director of operations for Nebraska Cultures. “This is the newest and most exciting area of probiotic research.”

Mike Bush, VP business development at Ganeden Biotech, said immune health and probiotics have been linked together for a long time in other parts of the world, such as in Asia and Europe. “Danone’s Actimel is a well-regarded functional immune beverage product worldwide,” he said, noting the immune benefits outside the United States have been recognized for a long time. “Now companies are working hard to promote benefits outside of standard digestion. This effort involves consumer education, which we are taking part in along with other probiotic companies and the International Probiotic Association (IPA).”

Isabelle Champié, human nutrition brand manager for Institut Rosell-Lallemand, agreed this is a strong area of probiotic growth, especially with the flu epidemic threatening. She said, “An increasing number of scientific publication and clinical evidence advocate the role of probiotics in the prevention of certain infections (e. g. ProbioKid from Institut-Rosell Lallem reduces the occurrence of common infectious diseases in children during winter by 25 percent).”

The most recent research on probiotics and immune health includes HOWARU®, from Danisco, a combination of Lactobacillus acidophilus NCFM® and Bifidobacterium lactis Bi-07 . Children ages 3 to 5 receiving either L. acidophilus alone or in combination with the B. lactis twice daily had reduced their fever incidence by 53 percent and 72.7 percent, respectively, after six months of supplementation. Also, coughing was reduced by 41.4 percent and 62.1 percent, and runny noses were lessened by 28.2 percent and 58.5percent.1
Lesser-known Bacillus coagulans GBI-30 (as GanedenBC30®, from Ganeden Biotech Inc.) may impact T-cell response to certain viral respiratory infections, according to recent research published in Postgraduate Medicine.2 Researchers noted significantly increased T-cell production of TNF-alpha in response to exposure to both adenovirus and influenza A (H3N2 Texas strain).

In 2006, researchers at the North American Research Conference on Complementary and Integrative Medicine, Edmonton, reported on their study that showed probiotic tablets (Immunobiotix™, from Nutraceutix Inc.) were shown to enhance phagocytosis by monocytes and neutrophils in a healthy adult human population.

Another recent trial found probiotics may stave off pneumonia. The study from the University Hospital in Lund, Sweden, found the bacterial strain Lactobacillus plantarum 299 is just as effective as antiseptics in protecting intubated, critically ill patients from ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), which occurs when harmful bacteria from the mouth, throat or breathing tube are inhaled into the lungs.3

The theory behind the immune effects of probiotics has focused on the stimulation of innate immune response and increasing pathogenic resistance, as evidenced by a slew of trials on many different strains of probiotics, especially Lactobacilli.4,5,6,7