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I was offered a bed. The seller claimed that the bed has probiotic bacteria in it. It contains special living bacteria that will eat germs and sweat.

Wow.

Does that really work?

If so, I'll buy.

Claims: http://www.foodmanufacture.co.uk/NPD/Probiotic-bed-bugs-that-don-t-bite

The claim was made at the mall actually. However, a search in Google shows many marketing results.

Sklivvz
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  • [Bioptic](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bioptics_%28device%29) seems like the wrong word. – Brendan Long Jun 09 '12 at 17:45
  • Pro-biotic beds seem to be what you're looking at, but I can't find anything besides marketing. No studies or anything.. – Brendan Long Jun 09 '12 at 17:51
  • Why the downvote? Google probiotic bed and you'll see tons of claims. I even got a good answer. And I seriously want to buy. This is not ranting. –  Jun 11 '12 at 01:23
  • It seems odd to change the title to fit the answer not the question – Henry Jun 11 '12 at 17:46
  • bioptic is the wrong word. The right word is probiotic. –  Jun 12 '12 at 04:24

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If you follow this and other similar mattress marketing back, it leads to a product called Purotex made by Bekaert Textiles. They have a promotional leaflet which has clearly been supervised by lawyers checking against laws which restrict health claims. The leaflet says:

Probiotic bacteria and textile products containing probiotic bacteria are not active substances or biocidal products within the meaning of Biocidal Products Directive 98/8/EC, as they exert no action against harmful organisms. Instead, these bacteria consume the excrements of dust mites that are known to contain several allergens, causing uncomfortable conditions to humans. There are no intended (claimed) or known unintended biocidal effects as regards the use of probiotic bacteria or textile products containing such bacteria.

The Probiotic Task Force members are committed to ensure that statements, e.g., in marketing materials, the press or elsewhere are clear, consistent and not misleading for the users of their products.

So they seem to claim that it could reduce allergens from mite excrement, but seem to deny claiming that it "eats germs".

Henry
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  • Ah and the dust mites itself is dangerous even without their excrements –  Jun 20 '12 at 04:31