Probiotic Bacteria Induce a ‘Glow of Health’
Figure 1
Dietary supplementation with probiotic organisms induces lustrous fur in aged mice.
(A) Aged female C57BL/6 strain mice consuming probiotics exhibited significantly (p<0.0001) increased shininess quantifiable by sensory evaluation of human panelists blinded to mouse identity and using a standardized fur luster scale. (B) Reflectometry instrumentation using one degree (p<0.01) and five degree (p<0.01) field analyses revealed significantly (p<0.05) increased light reflectivity of mouse fur after eating probiotics, when tested under highly controlled lighting conditions. (C) Evaluation of mucocutaneous pH shows eating probiotic yogurt or purified probiotic bacteria induced more acidic conditions in skin, oral cavity, vaginal mucosa, and rectum of female mice. Similar trends in male animals did not reach statistical significance. (D) C57BL/6 mice consuming purified L. reuteri bacteria in drinking water had more rapid fur re-growth after shaving (right) when compared with matched mice drinking regular water (left).