Prebiotics research -- more than just a gut feeling

A new research project is being proposed to establish just how effective prebiotic ingredients -- substances that feed the friendly bacteria present in our gut -- are in different food applications.

Where probiotic products add more of the "healthy" bugs found naturally in the gut, prebiotic ingredients feed those that are already present. There has been a rapid increase in companies marketing such ingredients on the basis that a good balance of gut flora protects the digestive system and bowel against various cancers and other illnesses.

Now Leatherhead Food International (LFI) and The University of Reading have proposed a collaborative project with ingredient suppliers and healthy product manufacturers to research such products.

The project will look at the performance of individual prebiotic ingredients and examine whether blending one or more ingredients gives increased activity. It will also investigate how well they work in different food applications.

It is hoped that the project will not only help suppliers of prebiotic ingredients to understand and establish the benefits, but will also help manufacturers of yoghurts, confectionery, spreads and beverages look at potential applications and establish scientifically backed health claims.

Prebiotics are usually indigestible sugars that are obtained from plant materials or cereal crops, with the best known ones being inulin and fructo-oligosaccharides and galacto-oligosaccharides.

But, according to LFI, there are many new entrants on the market, including isomalto-oligosaccharide, soya-bean oligosaccharide, lactosucrose and xylo-oligosaccharides. And many others, such as tagatose, pectin, dextrins and larch arabinogalactan, are currently being looked at.

Dr Pretima Titoria, a principal food research scientist at LFI, says: "At the moment we have numerous questions on prebiotics -- a lot is known about some but not much on others.

"With forthcoming European Union legislation likely to curb the use of health claims that don't have scientific evidence to back them up, this work could help companies looking to establish health claims."

Such a claim was recently approved by the Dutch national authority for the Vitaalbrood Flora range of bread which contains Frutafit inulin supplied by Sensus. The claim says three slices of bread with at least 5g of Frutafit inulin per 100g "supports a well balanced gut flora composition and colon function by selectively stimulating the growth of Bifidobacterium"

The project will use equipment developed by Reading University to mimic the human gut. "At the beginning we will be using model gut systems and once we get optimised results in terms of functionality and product applications we will look at using human studies," says Titoria.

The project is expected to run for one to two years and companies interested should e-mail cgvgbevn@yrngureurnqsbbq.pbz​ before July 29, 2005.