Gastric survival of lactic acid bacteria in probiotic-labelled products from the Turkish market: An in vitro study

OpenAlex İngilizce

The resilience oflactic acid bacteria (LAB) incommercial probiotic products remains acritical area ofinvestigation, particularly regarding their capacity tosurvive the harsh gastric environment. Scientific guidelines indicate that atleast 6log CFU·g–1 ofviable probiotics must reach the intestines toachieve therapeutic benefits, which often requires aninitial concentration of8–9log CFU·g–1 inthe product. However, national regulations may specify lower thresholds; for example, Turkish Food Legislation requires 6 log CFU·g–1 for probiotic products and 7 log CFU·g–1 for kefir products. This study evaluates the invitro gastric survival of LAB in 20 probiotic-labelled foods and 5 supplements available in the Turkish market using a simulated gastric model. Results reveal that 75% of the marketed probiotic-labelled foods comply with their label claims. Additionally, 55% of the samples demonstrate LAB strains fully resistant to gastric acidity. Dairy-based products exhibit significantly better survival rates under simulated gastric conditions compared to supplements, highlighting their potential for enhanced therapeutic efficacy.