What is Combiotic Formula Milk?
“Combiotic” is a trademarked name of HiPP.
Parents are curious about the HiPP labeling of “Combiotic” formula milk. This term was actually created by HiPP laboratories, (a wonderful NCBI article explains in detail the creation of HiPP’s Combiotic line of formulations) and is a phrase which defines the synergy between the prebiotics and the probiotics of the formula.
Certain HiPP formulas contain the L. Fermentum probiotic (Lactobacillus). This friendly bacteria is found naturally in real mother’s milk and has serves to populate the gut of newborns with healthy bacterial strands that can defend and digest as the infant grows.
Probiotics are valuable inclusions in our diet, however, in order to survive they feed off of prebiotics, a special form of dietary fiber. These prebiotics serve as the food so to speak for the probiotic microorganisms. The prebiotics used by HiPP are galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS) that are obtained from lactose and are a natural component of breast milk oligosaccharides. Note that most US infant formulas do NOT contain lactose, but use fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS) obtained from plants. Lactose is the ONLY sugar in HiPP infant milk formulas– just as in breast milk.
The presence of prebiotics serves to cultivate and keep alive the probiotic strands, allowing them to proliferate and establish themselves in the gut. This creates a synergistic value to the prebiotic and probiotic relationship which HiPP has termed Combiotic.