Bifidobacterium yogurt is yogurt that has been cultured with bacteria from the genus Bifidobacterium. The most commonly used Bifidobacterium in yogurts or other dairy products are Bifidobacterium animalis and Bifidobacterium bifidum. These bacteria are probiotic and are known for their positive effects on the human digestion system. A number of different types of harmless bacteria can be used to culture yogurt, and most yogurts are made using a mixture of different bacteria. bifidobacterium yogurt is common, though not as common as yogurts made with other types of live cultures.
Yogurt is made by adding live cultures of various bacteria to milk and allowing the milk to ferment. The live cultures include bacteria from a number of different genera, all of which are safe to consume. When added to milk, Bifidobacterium bacteria feed on lactose and excrete waste in the form of lactic acid, which makes the milk sour and firm in texture. The bacteria remain alive in the yogurt throughout the fermentation process and are often consumed along with the yogurt.
Non-dairy yogurts can also be made into bifidobacterium yogurt. Common non-dairy yogurt bases include soy and rice and coconut milks. Additives to these yogurts help them mimic the texture of dairy based yogurt while the addition of Bifidobacterium or other bacteria give these alternative yogurts the same health benefits that dairy yogurts with live cultures have.
Once the bifidobacterium yogurt is eaten, some of the live cultures in the yogurt remain in the digestive tract. This particular type of bacteria colonizes the walls of the large intestine, where it aids in the digestive process by helping to break down certain nutrients. It also helps prevent infestation by harmful bacteria by consuming most of the nutrients that could feed these types of bacteria. These helpful bacteria also help rid the intestines of oxygen and lower the potential hydrogen (pH) of the digestive tract, making it an inhospitable environment for other types of bacteria. A number of medical studies have confirmed that eating bifidobacterium yogurt can help protect a person from invasion by harmful bacteria.
Most of the bacteria in bifidobacterium yogurt do not remain in the digestive tract, as large amounts pass out of the body with the solid waste. Though most of these helpful bacteria do not remain in a person's body, their presence in the digestive tract it believed to help decrease the amount of time that it takes for food to pass through.