Probiotics in Bread and Baked Products: A New Product Category The modern human gut is teeming with bacterial cells, mostly located in the colon: about 100 trillion cells in total, representing more than 1,000 species of bacteria. By shaping and maintaining normal mucosal immunity, the intestinal flora forms a “barrier effect” that prevents colonization of the intestine by pathogens and thereby helps the body defend against infections. The delicate balance between microbes can be disturbed by diet, alcohol, contaminated foods, antibiotics, stress, and aging, as well as by digestive disorders and diseases. There is a growing market for foods that contain probiotic bacteria, and a wide variety of probiotic strains are being added to an array of foods. The ability of probiotic strains to survive conditions encountered in industrial manufacturing processes (e.g., temperature, pH, oxygen, etc.) is the main obstacle food manufacturers must overcome. For example, the heat involved in baking can result in significant losses in probiotic viability during the manufacture and storage of breads and baked goods. The heat stability of probiotic Bacillus subtilis R0179 has enabled it to be successfully added to bread and cookie formulations. Although probiotic Lactobacillus rhamnosus R0011 is heat sensitive, when sprayed on baked bread it showed good stability over the shelf life of the product. In the United States, B. subtilis and L. rhamnosus are eligible for structure/function claims, which can be used to market breads and baked products that contain them. |