Glossary · Probiotics
Abbreviations on probiotic packaging
Two capsules labelled “10 billion bacteria” can contain entirely different things. The strain and the point at which the manufacturer measured that number decide it.
The number of bacteria decreases throughout storage. A manufacturer can therefore declare the amount on the production date or at the end of shelf life — the first number is higher and looks better, the second says what is actually in the capsule on the day of purchase.
The second issue is naming. The bacterial species is not enough to consider two products the same; only the third part of the name identifies the specific strain to which the manufacturer-cited studies apply.
The terms one by one
- CFUcolony-forming units
- The number of live bacteria capable of multiplying, stated in billions per serving. What matters is what the declaration refers to: the amount on the production date or at the end of shelf life. The latter is lower and we record it when the manufacturer states it. CFU is not a nutritional value from Annex XIII, so the manufacturer is not required to state it.
- Strainbacterial strain designation
- The full name has three parts: genus, species and a strain symbol, for example Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG. Without the third part, it is unknown what is meant, because studies concern specific strains, not whole species.
- Prebioticbacterial nutrient
- An ingredient added alongside strains, most often inulin or fructooligosaccharides. It increases capsule mass and price, but not the CFU number.
- Synbioticprobiotic with a prebiotic
- A product combining one with the other. It is a separate product category, not an improved version of a probiotic.
- Microencapsulationbacterial coating
- A technology intended to protect bacteria from gastric acid, described on packaging with various trade names. It does not change the declared CFU number.
- DR Capsdelayed-release capsule
- A coating that dissolves only in the intestine. Information about form, not content.
- Saccharomyces boulardiiprobiotic yeast
- It is not a bacterium, so the content is sometimes stated in milligrams instead of CFU. We do not place such products in one table with bacterial products.
Other groups of terms
Omega-3 Vitamin D Magnesium, zinc, iron Vitamin C B vitamins Collagen Creatine Label and calculations
How the numbers from a label turn into the cost of a day is shown in the omega-3 calculator — for now this is the only finished category. The rules by which we build the ranking are described in the How we rank section.