Bacterial Colonies in three Different Brands of Yogurt Morgan Ashley and Gavrielle Filanova

What are probiotics? Gram positive bacteria included primarily in two genera: Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium “Live microorganisms which when administered in adequate amounts confer a health benefit on the host” -World Health Organization Eli Metchnikoff, the Russian born Nobel Prize recipient (1908) working at the Pasteur Institute was the first to observe the positive role played by some selected bacteria "The dependence of the intestinal microbes on the food makes it possible to adopt measures to modify the flora in our bodies and to replace the harmful microbes by useful microbes" –Eli Metchnikoff

Probiotics in Food For use in foods, probiotic microorganisms should: Be capable of surviving passage through the digestive tract & have the capability to proliferate in the gut This means they must be resistant to gastric juices and be able to grow in the presence of bile & under conditions in the intestines OR Be consumed in a food vehicle that allows them to survive passage through the stomach and exposure to bile.

Health benefits of probiotics Probiotics play very important roles in regulating proper intestinal function and digestion by balancing intestinal microflora Current probiotic research is being conducted on on the gut microbiome’s implications on digestion, immunity, brain function, and restoration of healthy gut bacteria depleted by antibiotics Infants and children with viral gastroenteritis seem to derive the most benefit from probiotics

Who here consumes yogurt? What factors do you consider when purchasing yogurt? Price? Advertisement of quality & health benefits? (protein & probiotic content) Brand names?

Do you get what you pay for? ProsCons The more expensive name brand Name brands and advertisements indicate that it must be of higher quality, and therefore confer more health benefits More expensive The less expensive store brand The lower price indicates that it may be of lower quality, and may not confer the same health benefits Less expensive

Our Question & Hypothesis Q= Is there a difference in bacteria counts between three different brands of yogurt? H- There will be a difference in the number/ density of bacteria between three different yogurt brands.

The Three Brands 1= Activia 2= Price Chopper (generic brand) 3= Chobani

The Experiment: Materials 15 Agar plates were poured Divided into 3 groups; 5 plates for each yogurt brand Three 99 mL bottles of distilled water 0.01 mL of each brand of yogurt

The Experiment: Methods 0.01mL of each yogurt was pipetted into 99mLs distilled water The glass bottles of diluted yogurt were shaken well

The Experiment: Methods 0.1mL of diluted yogurt was pipetted onto each agar plate and spread throughout using an “L” shaped glass cell spreader In between each transfer of diluted yogurt, the glass cell spreader was sterilized using acetone and a flame

The Experiment: Methods The plates were incubated at 25°C for 5 days The CFUs were counted using a counting pen

Results SourcedfFSig.Partial Eta Squared Yogurt Corrected Total 12 The o.oo1 significance indicates that there is a significant difference between the brands of yogurt, and the odds that our findings occurred by change are very low. Table 4. Tukey post hoc Analysis of Yogurts (I) Yogurt(J) Yogurt Mean Difference (I-J) Std. Error95% Confidence Interval Lower BoundUpper Bound PC Generic Brand Activia * Chiobani Activia PC Generic Brand * Chiobani * ChiobaniPC Generic Brand

Colony Forming Units of Bacteria in Activia, Price Chopper Brand, and Chobani Yogurt

Conclusions Statistically significant differences in CFUs include the differences between: Activia vs. Chobani & Activia vs. Price Chopper Brand The difference in CFUs between Price Chopper Brand vs. Chobani was not found the be statistically significant Activia was found to have the lowest bacteria count Price Chopper brand was found to have the highest bacteria count

You may not always get what you pay for! Activia price: ___ oz yogurt costs – cost per oz Chobani price: ___ oz of yogut costs – cost per oz Price Chopper brand price: __ oz of yogurt costs – cost per oz

Activia Lawsuit In February, 2010 a class action settlement reached in federal court ruled that Dannon must pay consumers up to $45 million in damages for exaggerated health claims Under terms of the settlement, Dannon must remove the words "clinically" and "scientifically proven" from product labels and advertisements of Activia yogurt In their place, the words "clinical studies show," or something similar, must be substituted. "This was a disingenuous advertising campaign that promised something that hasn't been proven," Dr. Roshini Rajapaksa,, a gastroenterologist, told ABC News. "Dannon stands by its advertising and denies it did anything wrong.”

References World Health Organization &Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Report of a joint fao/who expert consultation on evaluation of health and nutritional properties of probiotics in food including powder milk with live lactic acid bacteria. (2001, October). Retrieved from /en/probiotics.pdf McMullen, T. (n.d.). Retrieved from lawsuit/story?id=