The concept of ‘‘probiotics’’ has attracted much attention with
the emergence of antibiotic resistant bacteria and natural ways of
suppressing pathogens (Tharmaraj & Shah, 2004). Soymilk is rich in
high quality proteins and contains no cholesterol or lactose, and only
small quantities of saturated fatty acids. It may be supplied to the
lactase-deficient consumers (Scalabrini, Rossi, Spettioli, & Matteuzi,
1998). On the other hand, many people may find the taste of soymilk
undesirable (Liu & Lin, 2000).Wang, Yu, and Chou (2002) indicated
that the presence of indigestible oligosaccharides such as stachyose
and raffinose and the raw bean flavor have limited the wide consumption
of soymilk and other soybean products. Stachyose and
raffinose are the principle oligosaccharides found in soymilk, and
believed to cause flatulence in human after eating soybean foods.
Lactobacillus acidophilus reduced the level of stachyose, raffinose
and sucrose while it increased the content of fructose, glucose and
galactose