Edward R. Farnworth

A review of latest research findings on the health promotion properties of tea.

Important progress has been made in the past five years concerning the effects of green and black tea on health. Experimentation with new accurate tools provide useful information about the metabolism of tea components in the body, their mode of action as antioxidants at the cellular level and their protective role in the development of cancer, cardiovascular disease and other pathologies. The use of tea components as nutraceuticals and functional foods are also discussed.

Handbook of Fermented Functional Foods

The History of Feremented Foods, J.B. Prajapati and B.M. Nair Challenges Associated with the Development of Probiotic-Containing Functional Foods, N. Kearney, C. Stanton, C. Desmond, M. Coakley, J.K. Collins, G. Fitzgerald, and R.P. Ross The Properties of Enterococcus faecium and the Fermented Milk Product- Gaio(R), M.C. Bertolami and E.R. Farnworth Kefir-A Fermented Milk Product, E.R. Farnworth and I. Mainville Yogurt and Immunity: The Health Benefits of Fermented Milk Products That Contain Lactic Acid Bacteria, J. Van de Water and P. Naiyanetr Health Properties of Milk Fermented with Lactobacillus. Casei strain Shirota (LcS), K. Miyazaki and T. Matsuzaki Biologically Active Peptides Released in Fermented Milk: Role and Functions, G. Vinderola, A. de Moreno de LeBlanc, G. Perdigon, and C. Matar Cheese and Its Potential As a Probiotic Food, K.J. Heller, W. Bockelmann, J. Schrezenmeir, and M. deVrese Natto: A Soybean Food Made by Fermenting Cooked Soybeans with Bacillus subtilis (natto), T. Hosoi and K. Kiuchi Fermented Meat, W.P. Hammes, D. Haller, and M.G. Ganzle Miso: Production, Properties, and Benefits to Health, Y. Minamiyama and S. Okada Korean Fermented Foods: Kimchi and Doenjang, J. Surh, Y.-K. L. Kim, and H.Kwon Lactobacillus plantarum: The Role in Foods and in Human mHealth, G. Molin Sauerkraut, W. Holzapfel, U. Schillinger, and H. Buckenhuskes New Trends of Table Olive Processing for Quality Control and Functional Proprieties, M. Hamdi Traditional Chinese Fermented Foods, Y-H.P. Hsieh, S. Pao, and J. Li Tempeh: A Mold-Modified Indigenous Fermented Food, D.Y.C. Fung and B.A. Crozier-Dodson Thai Fermented Foods: Microorganisms and Their Health Benefits, S. Tanasupawat and W. Visessanguan Production of Probiotic Cultures and Their Addition in Fermented Foods, C.P. Champagne and H. Mollgaard The Future for Fermented Foods, E.R. Farnworth Index

Kefir ? a complex probiotic

Kefir is a fermented milk drink produced by the actions of bacteria and yeasts contained in kefir grains, and is reported to have a unique taste and unique properties. During fermentation, peptides and exopolysaccharides are formed that have been shown to have bioactive properties. Moreover, in vitro and animal trials have shown kefir and its constituents to have anticarcinogenic, antimutagenic, antiviral and antifungal properties. Although kefir has been produced and consumed in Eastern Europe for a long period of time, few clinical trials are found in the scientific literature to support the health claims attributed to kefir. The large number of microorganisms in kefir, the variety of possible bioactive compounds that could be formed during fermentation, and the long list of reputed benefits of eating kefir make this fermented dairy product a complex

Tea, Kombucha, and health : a review

Abstract Kombucha is a refreshing beverage obtained by the fermentation of sugared tea with a symbiotic culture of acetic bacteria and fungi, consumed for its beneficial effects on human health. Research conducted in Russia at the beginning of the century and testimony indicate that Kombucha can improve resistance against cancer, prevent cardiovascular diseases, promote digestive functions, stimulate the immune system, reduce inflammatory problems, and can have many other benefits. In this paper, we report on studies that shed more light on the properties of some constituents of Kombucha. The intensive research about the effects of tea on health provide a good starting point and are summarized to get a better understanding of the complex mechanisms that could be implicated in the physiological activity of both beverages.

Immunomodulating capacity of kefir

Kefir is a fermented milk produced by the action of lactic acid bacteria, yeasts and acetic acid bacteria, trapped in a complex matrix of polysaccharides and proteins. Beyond its inherent high nutritional value as a source of proteins and calcium, kefir has a long tradition of being regarded as good for health in countries where it is a staple in the diet. However, published human or animal feeding trials to substantiate this view are not numerous. The aim of this work was to determine the immunomodulating capacity of kefir on the intestinal mucosal immune response in mice and to demonstrate the importance of dose and cell viability on this response. BALB/c mice were fed with commercial kefir ad libitum (diluted 1/10, 1/50, 1/100 or 1/200) or pasteurized kefir (diluted 1/6, 1/10, 1/50, 1/100) for 2, 5 or 7 consecutive days. At the end of each feeding period, the bacterial translocation assay was performed in the liver. Small intestine structure was studied by haematoxilin-eosin staining and light microscopy. The number of IgA+ and IgG+ cells was also determined. For the functional doses chosen, cytokines (IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, IL-12, TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma) were determined. Kefir and pasteurized kefir were able to modulate the mucosal immune system in a dose-dependent manner. Kefir was administred 10-times more diluted than pasteurized kefir, but it induced an immunomodulation of similar magnitude, indicating the importance of cell viabilty. The results suggest that a Th1 response was controlled by Th2 cytokines induced by kefir feeding. Pasteurized kefir would induce both Th2 and Th1 responses. This is the first study in vivo regarding the mechanisms involved in the immunomodulating capacity of the oral administration of kefir containing viable or heat-inactivated bacteria at different doses.

Kefir consumption does not alter plasma lipid levels or cholesterol fractional synthesis rates relative to milk in hyperlipidemic men: a randomized controlled trial [ISRCTN10820810]

BackgroundFermented milk products have been shown to affect serum cholesterol concentrations in humans. Kefir, a fermented milk product, has been traditionally consumed for its potential health benefits but has to date not been studied for its hypocholesterolemic properties.MethodsThirteen healthy mildly hypercholesterolemic male subjects consumed a dairy supplement in randomized crossover trial for 2 periods of 4 wk each. Subjects were blinded to the dairy supplement consumed. Blood samples were collected at baseline and after 4 wk of supplementation for measurement of plasma total, low-density lipoprotein, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations, as well as fatty acid profile and cholesterol synthesis rate. Fecal samples were collected at baseline and after 2 and 4 wk of supplementation for determination of fecal short chain fatty acid level and bacterial content.ResultsKefir had no effect on total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol or triglyceride concentrations nor on cholesterol fractional synthesis rates after 4 wk of supplementation. No significant change on plasma fatty acid levels was observed with diet. However, both kefir and milk increased (p < 0.05) fecal isobutyric, isovaleric and propionic acids as well as the total amount of fecal short chain fatty acids. Kefir supplementation resulted in increased fecal bacterial content in the majority of the subjects.ConclusionsSince kefir consumption did not result in lowered plasma lipid concentrations, the results of this study do not support consumption of kefir as a cholesterol-lowering agent.

Thermal processing, storage conditions, and the composition and physical properties of orange juice

Abstract Mexican orange juice bottled without pasteurization and frozen, or orange juice that was pasteurized, bottled, and frozen or orange juice pasteurized and stored at 1°C in plastic bins was sampled monthly for eight months. Juice density, cloud, and fructose levels were all significantly (P

Effects of the oral administration of the products derived from milk fermentation by kefir microflora on immune stimulation

Nutritional status has a major impact on the immune system. Probiotic effects ascribed to fermented dairy products arise not only from whole microorganisms but also from metabolites (peptides, exopolysaccharides) produced during the fermentation. We recently demonstrated the immunomodulating capacity of kefir in a murine model. We now aimed at studying the immunomodulating capacity in vivo of the products derived from milk fermentation by kefir microflora (PMFKM) on the gut. BALB/c mice received the PMFKM for 2, 5 or 7 consecutive days. IgA+ and IgG+ cells were determined on histological slices of the small and large intestine. IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, IL-12, IFNgamma and TNFalpha were determined in the gut, intestinal fluid and blood serum. IL-6 was also determined in the supernatant of a primary culture of small intestine epithelial cells challenged with PMFKM. PMFKM up-regulated IL-6 secretion, necessary for B-cell terminal differentiation to IgA secreting cells in the gut lamina propria. There was an increase in the number of IgA+ cells in the small and large intestine. The increase in the number of IgA+ cells was accompanied by an increase in the number of IL-4+, IL-10+ and IL-6+ cells in the small intestine. Effects of PMFKM in the large intestine were less widely apparent than the ones observed at the small intestine lamina propria. All cytokines that increased in the small intestine lamina propria, also did so in blood serum, reflecting here the immunostimulation achieved in the gut mucosa. We observed that the PMFKM induced a mucosal response and it was able to up and down regulate it for protective immunity, maintaining the intestinal homeostasis, enhancing the IgA production at both the small and large intestine level. The opportunity exists then to manipulate the constituents of the lumen of the intestine through dietary means, thereby enhancing the health status of the host.

Myocardial changes in newborn piglets fed sow milk or milk replacer diets containing different levels of erucic acid

This study was undertaken to determine whether the neonate was more susceptible to the effects of dietary erucic acid (22∶1n−9) than the adult. Newborn piglets were used to assess the safety of different levels of 22∶1n−9 on lipid and histological changes in the heart. Newborn piglets showed no myocardial lipidosis as assessed by oil red 0 staining, but lipidosis appeared with consumption of sow milk and disappeared by seven days of age. Milk replacer diets containing soybean oil, or rapeseed oil mixtures with up to 5% 22∶1n−9 in the oil, or 1.25% in the diet, gave trace myocardial lipidosis. Rapeseed oil mixtures with 7 to 42.9% 22∶1n−9 showed definite myocardial lipidosis in newborn piglets, which correlated to dietary 22∶1n−9, showing a maximum after one week on diet. The severity of the lipidosis was greater than observed previously with weaned pigs. There were no significant differences among diets in cardiac lipid classes except for triacylglycerol (TAG), which increased in piglets fed a repeseed oil with 42.9% 22∶1n−9. TAG showed the highest incorporation of 22∶1n−9, the concentration of 22∶1n−9 in TAG was similar to that present in the dietary oil. Among the cardiac phospholipids, sphingomyelin and phosphatidylserine had the highest, and diphosphatidylglycerol (DPG) the lowest level of 22∶1n−9. The low content of 22∶1n−9 in DPG of newborn piglets is not observed in weaned pigs and rats fed high erucic acid rapeseed oil. The relative concentration of saturated fatty acids was lowered in all cardiac phospholipids of piglets fed rapeseed oils, possibly due to the low content of saturated fatty acids in rapeseed oils. The results suggest that piglets fed up to 750 mg 22∶1n−9/kg body weight/day showed no adverse nutritional or cardiac effects.

The beneficial health effects of fermented foods: Potential probiotics around the world

Abstract The process of fermentation has been used worldwide as a means of preserving food and increasing its nutritional value. A wide variety of foods are fermented including milks, cereals, vegetables and root crops. Although detailed microbiology has not been done on many of these fermented products, it is evident that a large number of different microorganisms are used. A closer examination shows that lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are often used in food fermentation processes. Many LAB are considered as probiotics and are therefore good for health. The lists of fermented foods in this paper may contain probiotic foods that will become important in the future.