ABSTRACT
Dairy foods, especially fermented milk foods, are very promising food products among all the dairy products. Development of new and innovative food products is an attractive area of research as consumers demand more and more beneficial foods. Innovation in product developments may be the incorporation of probiotics, prebiotics, fruits purees, or other additives. Many probiotic bacteria have been reported for their beneficial effects such as counteracting hypocholesterolemia, cancer, diabetes, hypertension, and diarrhea; their antimicrobial and antioxidative properties. Probiotic terms include the specific bacterial strains, represented by lactic acid bacteria such as Bifidobacterium spp. and Lactobacillus spp. Fermented dairy foods, mostly fermented milk products, are normally used as carriers for the probiotic bacteria. Probiotic-incorporated food products exhibit effectiveness in controlled clinical trials. Yogurt is a semisolid food that is the product of lactic acid fermentation of milk, and it is consumed around the world.
