The capacity of short-chain fructo-oligosaccharides to stimulate faecal bifidobacteria: a dose-response relationship study in healthy humans

Table 2 Bacterial counts and pH (m ± SEM, log cfu/g) in 40 healthy volunteers assigned to a 7-d consumption of short-chain fructo-oligosaccharides (scFOS) at a dose from 2.5 to 10 g/d or a placebo

scFOS dose (g/d)	Lactobacillus			Bacteroides			Enterobacteria			pH
	d8*	d15*	P**	d8*	d15*	P**	d8*	d15*	P**	d8*	d15*	P**
0 (placebo)	5.21 ± 0.36	5.18 ± 0.41	***	8.76 ± 0.45	8.53 ± 0.32	***	6.93 ± 0.29	7.07 ± 0.37	***	6.94 ± 0.13	6.91 ± 0.11	***
2.5	4.66 ± 0.48	5.14 ± 0.60	NS	8.93 ± 0.28	9.08 ± 0.17	NS	6.93 ± 0.26	7.28 ± 0.33	NS	6.68 ± 0.18	6.75 ± 0.14	NS
5.0	5.34 ± 0.66	5.99 ± 0.67	NS	8.87 ± 0.18	9.09 ± 0.28	NS	7.34 ± 0.33	7.81 ± 0.32	NS	6.48 ± 0.15	6.52 ± 0.11	NS
7.5	5.37 ± 0.40	5.97 ± 0.39	NS	8.74 ± 0.25	8.61 ± 0.29	NS	6.30 ± 0.29	6. 78 ± 0.26	NS	6.66 ± 0.13	6. 78 ± 0.13	NS
10	5.40 ± 0.41	5.73 ± 0.83	NS	8.51 ± 0.41	9. 39 ± 0.26	NS	6.28 ± 0.40	6.58 ± 0.32	NS	7.05 ± 0.21	7.20 ± 0.25	NS

*days 1–8 was a run-in period during which no treatment occurred, but subjects excluded from their diet fermented dairy products containing viable bifidobacteria and limited consumption of food products containing high level of non-digestible oligosaccharides.
** Statistical analyses were performed versus placebo, on the difference d15-d8, using an unpaired t-test
*** As the difference days 15-8 with placebo was the reference, p-values are not reported.

ISSN: 1475-2891