Effect of Chocobar Ice Cream Containing Bifidobacterium on Salivary Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacilli: A Randomised Controlled Trial

Purpose: To examine the effect of chocobar ice cream containing bifidobacteria on salivary mutans streptococci and lactobacilli. Materials and Methods: A double-blind, randomised controlled trial was conducted with 30 subjects (18 to 22 years of age) divided into 2 groups, test (chocobar ice cream with probiotics) and control (chocobar ice cream without probiotics). The subjects were instructed to eat the allotted chocobar ice cream once daily for 18 days. Saliva samples collected at intervals were cultured on Mitis Salivarius agar and Rogosa agar and examined for salivary mutans streptococci and lactobacilli, respectively. The Mann-Whitney U-test, Friedman and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests were used for statistical analysis. Results: Postingestion in the test group, a statistically significant reduction (p 0.05) of salivary mutans streptococci was recorded, but a non-significant trend was seen for lactobacilli. Significant differences were was also observed between follow-ups. Conclusion: Short-term daily ingestion of ice cream containing probiotic bifidobacteria may reduce salivary levels of mutans streptococci in young adults. Keywords: Bifidobacterium, ice cream, Lactobacillus acidophilus, probiotics, saliva, Streptococcus mutans