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The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effectiveness of a national alcohol-prevention social marketing campaign in Thailand, investigating specifically the competing forces of the campaign vis-à-vis alcohol advertising.

Based on repeated cross-sectional, nationally representative data from the 2011-2014 Annual Survey of Buddhist Lent Campaign Evaluation (N = 10,133), a generalized ordered logit (partial proportional odds) model is used. The outcome of interest is self-reported alcohol consumption during the campaign period, compared to before. The main explanatory variables include exposure to the campaign and exposure to alcohol advertising.

Results show that exposure to the campaign and exposure to alcohol advertising positively and negatively influence alcohol consumption, respectively. Compared to those with one type of exposure and those without any exposure to alcohol-related messages, drinkers with exposure to both the campaign and alcohol advertising are estimated to have the highest probability of drinking reduction during the campaign period.

The paper highlights the importance of accounting for a countervailing force (in this case, alcohol advertising) in campaign evaluation studies. It also suggests that alcohol-control social marketing be continued and that the government should disseminate alcohol-prevention messages in a balanced manner, ensuring that both costs and benefits of alcohol consumption are well-understood by the intended audience.

Probiotics are known to extend health benefits and therefore may be included during yoghurt manufacture to enhance its prophylactic properties. Different probiotic strains may exhibit diverse biotechnological behaviour in association with yoghurt cultures, therefore interactive behaviour amongst probiotic and yoghurt cultures must be evaluated prior to their commercial application. This paper aims to assess the effect of inclusion of different probiotic cultures on various biotechnological (technological, dietetic and prophylactic) characteristics of yoghurt cultures.

Yoghurt was assessed for technological characteristics based on acidification and flavour production, dietetic characteristics based on proteolytic activity, vitamin synthesis and L (+) lactic acid production and prophylactic characteristics based on β‐galactosidase activity, antibacterial spectrum, viability in product as well as during gastro‐intestinal transit, intestinal colonization, immunomodulation, anti‐carcinogenicity and hypocholesterolemic effect.

Different probiotic cultures exhibited diverse technological, dietetic and prophylactic behaviour in association with yoghurt cultures. Functional properties of traditional yoghurt could be enhanced with the combined introduction of probiotic cultures such as Bifidobacterium bifidum, Bifidobacterium infantis and Lactobacillus acidophilus and the resultant product may be recommended for consumption as a dietary adjunct.

The paper shows that combined introduction of probiotic cultures such as B. bifidum, B. infantis and L. acidophilus, as microbial additives during the manufacture of yoghurt would result in a product with enhanced functional properties.

The excessive consumption of alcohol in numerous countries in the world, combined with the progressively younger age of the consumers, made it necessary for companies to use instruments of communication aimed at the development of consumption responsibility, so as to prevent reckless behaviour and the health risks thereto associated. The purpose of this paper is to assess the visibility and effectiveness of responsible consumption messages used for the sale of the product “beer” (on packaging and in advertisements); the study used a sample audience made up of teenagers and young adults from southern Italy.

The methodology used was that of the focus group. Three interview sessions were conducted, one dedicated to teenagers, age 16–17 years, and two dedicated to young adult panels, age 20–24 years. A ten-question questionnaire was designed prior to the conduction of the focus groups, and it was used in all the sessions.

The study shows the weak efficacy of the “drink responsibly” communication campaigns carried out by beer manufacturers. The totality of the interviewees failed to remember the existence of the “drink responsibly” messages and, even after supplementary visual stimulation, they were mostly disinterested, defining the fact that companies from the alcoholic drinks industry carry out consumption awareness campaigns as an out-and-out nonsensical contradiction.

The survey draws attention to the perception by young audiences of the more recent “drink responsibly” communication campaigns carried out by beer manufacturers, aiming at encouraging a more responsible attitude to alcohol consumption. There still are not many such inquests aimed at determining the response of young people to the use of slogans and commercials connected to responsible drinking in the literature; therefore, this study aimed at filling this gap. In fact, the authors believe this study is important for assessing the effectiveness of such instruments for achieving greater responsibility in the use of alcoholic drinks, so as to develop better awareness in the ranks of youths. Among the new communication strategies that were proposed to the participants, there were video commercials containing responsible consumption messages and the new prohibition marks placed directly on the product labels.

The purpose of this paper is to enlighten the prophylactic aspect of cultured milk products, which render it suitable for lactose‐intolerant subjects.

The paper outlines the significance of lactase enzyme and the mechanism of lactase digestion. This is followed by a discussion of lactase activities in starter cultures and cultured milk products for lactose‐intolerant participants. Factors affecting lactase activity are described.

Starter cultures possess the enzyme β‐galactosidase, required for lactose hydrolysis and their application led to the development of a number of cultured milk products, which are more easily digestible than milk by lactose‐intolerant individuals. Reasons attributable for better digestion of cultured milk products than milk are reduction in lactose content, increase in microbial lactase enzyme, stimulation of host's mucosal lactase activity and slower transit of cultured milk products as compared to milk.

Consumption of cultured milk products by lactose‐intolerant recipients is suggested.

The purpose of this article is to attempt to highlight various approaches for enhancing the viability of probiotics, with special emphasis on micro‐encapsulation.

Various techniques, such as selection of acid and bile resistant strains, use of oxygen impermeable packaging materials, two‐step fermentation, stress adaptation, inclusion of micro‐nutrient, sonication of bacteria and micro‐encapsulation, which could be employed for maintaining or enhancing probiotic viability are discussed, with special emphasis on micro‐encapsulation.

Probiotics lose their viability during gastro‐intestinal transit due to unfavorable intestinal environment. Amongst diverse techniques micro‐encapsulation could confer protection to the probiotics both in the product as well as in the gastro‐intestinal environment.

The paper shows that micro‐encapsulation of probiotics renders them stable both in the product as well as in the intestinal environment and application of encapsulated probiotics would result in a product with greater prophylactic activities.