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Probiotics: Foods
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A widely accepted definition of probiotics is ‘live microbial food ingredients that are beneficial to health’. However, the scientific basis of this definition has recently been questioned since animal studies suggest that some probiotic effects can be achieved by nonviable bacteria and even by isolated bacterial DNA. Therefore, probiotics have more recently been defined as ‘microbial cell preparations or components of microbial cells that have a beneficial effect on the health and well being of the host’ (Salminen S 1999).
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Experts have debated how to define probiotics. One widely used definition, developed by the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, is that probiotics are "live microorganisms, which, when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit on the host."
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The beneficial effects of food with added live micro-organisms (probiotics) on human health and nutrition have been increasingly recognized by health professionals. Recent scientific work on the properties and functionalisty of living micro-organisms in food suggest that probiotics play an important role in immunological, digestive and respiratory functions, and could have a significant effect in alleviating infectious disease in children and other high-risk groups.
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Slightly different definitions of probiotics exist. For example, a probiotic has been defined as “a live microbial food ingredient that, when ingested in sufficient quantities, exerts health benefits.”1 Similarly, the Joint Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization Working Group on drafting “Guidelines for the Evaluation of Probiotics in Food” has recommended that probiotics be defined as “live microorganisms which, when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit on the host.”2
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