We need more bacteria, damnit!
I think I have definitive proof that a segment of Japan is obsessed with numbers.
This morning, I saw a TV commercial for a drink called Bifina Super which apparently contains bacteria to improve the health of your stomach and intestines. That's all well and good, and I think I have even tried a similar product before.
The weird thing about this commercial is that they were actually posting the number of bacteria contained in each serving. The package is pictured below; the Japanese text translates roughly as "Guard [your health] properly! In each packet, 500 million 'bifidobacteria will be delivered all the way to your intestines!'" As a bonus, they are throwing in one billion acidophilus bacteria! How magnanimous!
That's strange to me, because even as a math- and science-oriented guy, I really couldn't give a shit how many individual bacteria there are in something I eat. In fact, given that they are bacteria, I'd almost rather not know...having watched too many 20/20 evening specials featuring news that the average kitchen sponge contains X billion bacteria, relative to only X/2 in your toilet bowl. It's also strange that they can put such a precise figure. I was under the impression that bacteria continue to multiply without stopping until they run out of food. Perhaps there's some way of temporarily stopping their growth to make the advertising true, and after consumption they recommence their exponential growth rates.
I didn't know how to say "acidophilus" in Japanese until this post (乳酸菌) nor did I know how to spell it in English. (^-^)
This morning, I saw a TV commercial for a drink called Bifina Super which apparently contains bacteria to improve the health of your stomach and intestines. That's all well and good, and I think I have even tried a similar product before.
The weird thing about this commercial is that they were actually posting the number of bacteria contained in each serving. The package is pictured below; the Japanese text translates roughly as "Guard [your health] properly! In each packet, 500 million 'bifidobacteria will be delivered all the way to your intestines!'" As a bonus, they are throwing in one billion acidophilus bacteria! How magnanimous!
That's strange to me, because even as a math- and science-oriented guy, I really couldn't give a shit how many individual bacteria there are in something I eat. In fact, given that they are bacteria, I'd almost rather not know...having watched too many 20/20 evening specials featuring news that the average kitchen sponge contains X billion bacteria, relative to only X/2 in your toilet bowl. It's also strange that they can put such a precise figure. I was under the impression that bacteria continue to multiply without stopping until they run out of food. Perhaps there's some way of temporarily stopping their growth to make the advertising true, and after consumption they recommence their exponential growth rates.
I didn't know how to say "acidophilus" in Japanese until this post (乳酸菌) nor did I know how to spell it in English. (^-^)
posted by jeremy at 11:16 PM
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