Chocolate has proved an effective way of delivering probiotics to the body, according to a health specialist.

A new product has been developed combining the good bacteria with the benefits of dark chocolate.

Research has shown that dark chocolate alone can bring down blood pressure.

The challenge was to find a way of delivering probiotics in food, which would survive the natural defense mechanisms in the stomach in order to pass through the bowel to treat it.

Each 11-gram square of the new chocolate will deliver 200 million microorganisms in two categories – lactobacillus acidophilus and bifidobacterium lactis.

They could help treat gastroenterological problems, which affect 95 million Americans, advisor for the specialist chocolatiers Xocai Richard Van Beek said.

"Probiotics are living microorganisms which when administered effectively in adequate amounts confer health benefits," he added.

The adult intestinal tract contains more than 100 trillion microorganisms with only 400 different bacterial species identified to date, Mr Van Beek explained.