Abstract
The effect of xylooligosaccharide from xylan on the human intestinal flora was studied. We had already observed that the grawth of intestinal bifidobacteria was selectively pramoted by administration of 5g xylooligosaccharide per day. To determine the minimum dose necessary to produce this effect, 5 healthy male subjects aged 50 to 60 years each received 1 or 2g xylooligosaccharide daily for 3 weeks. As the dose of xylooligosaccharide was increased, the percentage of bifidobacteria relative to the total intestinal bacterial flora tended to increase. Xylooligosaccharide was found to produce a selective increase in bifidobacteria even when administered at 1g per day.
