Assessment of the Microbiological Status of Probiotic Products

The aim of this study was to perform the microbiological analysis of quality of 25 probiotic products, available on the Polish market. Analysis of bacterial viability in probiotic products showed that not all of these preparations possess a suitable number of bacteria. Moreover, some of the tested probiotic products contained bacterial strains other than those declared by the manufacturer. All tested strains recovered from probiotic products were found to be resistant to metronidazole and susceptible to nitrofurantoin. The susceptibility to other antibiotics was strain specific. Probiotic products should be subject to regular and thorough inspection by appropriate institutions.