The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has examined more than 800 health claims from food companies, including those submitted by the multi-billion pound probiotic industry. EFSA's independent panel of scientists found that the claims that these products could strengthen the body's defences and reduce gut problems were either so general as to be inadmissible, or could not be shown to have the claimed effect.
In a separate ruling, the panel examined a dossier of 12 studies submitted by Yakult for its own strain of probiotic bacteria, Lactobacillus casei shirota, reports the Telegraph. It found that all were inadequate to support the company's claim that its products maintained immune defences against the common cold.