Cindy,  You might want to share with the nutritionist the reason the stools
of this formula are more like breastmilk stools is because they use a culture
of bifidobacterium originally obtained from human fecal samples (of course
purified).  You may read all about it at the US Patent Office.  It's patent #
5902743 called "Probiotic bifidobacterum strain" and filed in 1998.
http://uspto.gov/patft/index.html

"We took 196 human samples from a family (mother, infant, father, sibling).
Fecal samples (especially from the newborn infant and her sibling) were found
to be the major source of bifidobacteria. Importantly, no bifidobacteria were
found in 6 breast milk samples tested from the mother.

A Bifidobacterium strain was found in oral and nasal samples taken from the
infant immediately after birth, but not from these same sources when sampled
later on the same day. In contrast, no Bifidobacterium strain was recovered
from 11 fecal and 6 vaginal samples within the first 37 hours, but a specific
Bifidobacterium strain was recovered from infant fecal samples obtained from
.gtoreq.38 hours to 1 year after birth. Bifidobacteria were detected in all
11 infant samples obtained at 6 months, but only in 4 out of the 13 samples
obtained at 12 months.

Genomic fingerprinting via pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) was
conducted on intact genomic DNA from 16 Bifidobacterium strains from the
newborn female obtained from 6 positive samples (2 each from mouth, nose, and
anus) taken immediately after birth and 1 fecal isolate from the second day
(38 h). All 17 isolates recovered from the 7 positive samples displayed
essentially the same restriction fragment genomic fingerprints. Essentially
the same fingerprint elements were also observed in all 6 Bifidobacterium
strains recovered from 2 fecal samples obtained from the mother at the time
of birth. Maternal feces (not breast milk) was therefore the source of the
Bifidobacterium found in the neonate. Since the breast milk itself did not
have the bacteria, breast milk appears to be a prebiotic, not a probiotic.

Bifidobacterium strains otherwise obtained from the infant within 1 month, at
6 months and up to 3 years after delivery were also analyzed. Isolates
recovered from the infant samples taken from delivery to 1 month belonged to
a single clonal type. However, isolates recovered from samples obtained at 6
months after birth contained three clonal types. Clonal type A was the
predominant group observed in isolates from positive samples from delivery to
1 month. It was also present in bifidobacteria at six months, but was not the
predominant group at 6 months.

Between 1 month and 6 months the infant was fed solid foods and received some
antibiotics. Thus, the different diet and/or medicine is suspected to have
caused subtle changes in the flora that were only discoverable via the
conduct of PFGE.

In addition to 6 isolates recovered from 2 fecal samples taken from the
mother at the time of birth, isolates from 3 fecal samples obtained within 1
month after delivery also displayed the same or closely related genomic
fingerprints to that which predominated in the breast fed child. In contrast,
5 isolates from one vaginal sample and another 2 fecal samples taken from the
mother at the same period showed distinct genomic fingerprints. Also,
isolates from the mother's fecal is samples taken at 6 and 12 months
displayed significantly different fingerprints.

These data indicated that a particular clone of bifidobacterium predominated
in this mother at parturition, and, thereafter, became much less prevalent.
Isolation of this Bifidobacterium clone from a healthy infant throughout the
first 12 months is indicative of the safe nature of this bacterium in vivo.
Its predominance when the infant is youngest (and thus most vulnerable)
suggests its importance.

We therefore chose this strain for the ATCC deposit referred to above, and
for use as a probiotic. The genomic fingerprint of this strain did not match
the genomic fingerprint of any of the known Bifidobacterium strains that we
tested.

Isolation

As noted above, we obtained samples from a newborn infant (e.g. feces). We
cultured the sample overnight at 37.degree. C. in Reinforced Clostridal
medium, plus 0.5% propionic acid and 0.05% cysteine-HCl (pH 5.0)(RC5 medium)
under anaerobic conditions. We then streaked portions therefrom onto RC5 agar
plates, and then incubated the plates 2-3 days at 37.degree. C. under
anaerobic conditions.

We then selected milky white, large colonies for further characterization and
placed them in Brain Heart Infusion (BHI) broth supplemented with 0.5% yeast
extract, 0.5% dextrose and 0.05% cysteine-HCl. A representative colony was
selected and submitted for the previously mentioned ATCC deposit.

EXAMPLES

A preferred beverage of the present invention is infant formula such as
Carnation Good Start (Nestle Nutrition Division; Glendale, Calif.) that has
been inoculated with the bacterium. The bacterium can also be introduced into
various other beverages suitable for humans, especially infants and toddlers.
Examples could include, but not be limited to, fluid milks such as Nutrish
A/B produced by Mayfield Dairy Farms (Athens, Tenn.), fermented milks such as
kefir produced by Lifeway Foods (Skokie, Ill.), and/or yogurts such as
Mil--Mil produced by Yakult (Japan). Other bifid-amended beverages could
include fruit juices and/or sports drinks.

Preferred food items that can be inoculated with the bacterium include
dairy-based products such as natural cheese, cottage cheese, and ice cream.
Fruits and vegetables targeted for infants/toddlers, such as apple sauce or
strained peas and carrots (Gerber Products Company; Fremont, Mich.) are also
suitable for inoculation. Both infant cereals such as rice-or oat-based
cereals (Gerber) and adult cereals such as Musilix may also be suitable for
this invention. In addition to foods targeted for human consumption, animal
feeds may also be suitable for inoculation. It may also be of benefit to
directly inoculate newborn humans or animals with a solution containing the
preferred strain and to continue to dose such individuals with this strain at
regular intervals throughout weaning and during periods of stress, diarrhea,
and transit.

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