New probiotic Linex Forte – a natural path to healthy digestion

9. 3. 2009

Did you know that you have 500 different kinds of bacteria in your intestines, which contribute as much as a kilogram or two to your body weight?

That’s a lot, isn’t it? Some of those 500 types of bacteria are beneficial, but some are not. In a healthy person, the beneficial and harmful bacteria are in equilibrium. The ancient Chinese knew that balanced intestinal flora is the most important factor for a healthy and long life.

The reasons for a reduced level of beneficial bacteria in the intestines can include viral or bacterial infection (e.g. intestinal viruses), incorrect nutrition (e.g. carbonated drinks), excessive alcohol consumption, stress or taking antibiotics. The equilibrium in the intestinal flora is compromised, leading to diarrhea, flatulence or distention, which bring a host of other problems with them. Taking the beneficial bacteria in Linex Forte capsules prevents not only diarrhea, flatulence and distention, but also prevents the growth of harmful bacteria and maintains the equilibrium of the intestinal flora, which contributes to our general health and well-being.

Linex Forte is a new probiotic on the Slovenian market. It has a 100-times larger concentration of probiotic bacteria than Linex and is therefore much more effective in treating diarrhea, flatulence and distention. It contains two types of probiotic bacteria (Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium families), which colonize the entire intestinal tract, both the small (Lactobacillus) and large (Bifidobacterium) intestine. The advantage of Linex Forte over other probiotics (yogurt, food additives) is that it is a registered medicinal product. Therefore its content is controlled (the presence and concentration of the individual types of bacteria are listed) throughout its useful life and the bacteria have a proven medicinal effect.

Linex Forte is available at pharmacies and specialized shops.

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Lek, a Sandoz company, is one of the pillars of leading world generics company Sandoz. It operates as a global development center for products and technologies, as a global manufacturing center for active pharmaceutical ingredients and medicines, as a competence center for the development of vertically integrated products, as a Sandoz competence center in the field of development and manufacturing of biopharmaceutical products and as a supply center for the markets of CEE, SEE and CIS, sales Slovenia and sales services for Sandoz’s global markets. Lek d.d. employs about 2,820 people and achieved total sales of USD 904 million in 2006. For further information please consult http://www.lek.si

Sandoz, a Division of the Novartis group, is a global leader in the field of generic pharmaceuticals, offering a wide array of high-quality, affordable products that are no longer protected by patents. Sandoz has a portfolio of more than 840 active substances in over 5 000 forms worldwide. Key product groups include antibiotics, treatments for central nervous system disorders, gastrointestinal medicines, cardiovascular treatments and hormone therapies. Sandoz develops, produces and markets these drugs along with pharmaceutical and biotechnological active substances and anti-infectives. In addition to the strong organic growth in recent years, Sandoz has made a series of acquisitions including Lek (Slovenia), Sabex (Canada), Hexal (Germany) and EonLabs (U.S.) and sells its products in more than 110 countries. In 2006, Sandoz employed around 21,000 people worldwide and posted sales of USD 6 billion.

Novartis AG (NYSE: NVS) is a world leader in offering medicines to protect health, cure disease and improve well-being. Our goal is to discover, develop and successfully market innovative products to treat patients, ease suffering and enhance the quality of life. Novartis is the only company with leadership positions in both patented and generic pharmaceuticals. We are strengthening our medicine-based portfolio, which is focused on strategic growth platforms in innovation-driven pharmaceuticals, high-quality and low-cost generics and leading self-medication OTC brands. In 2006, the Group’s businesses achieved net sales of USD 37.0 billion and net income of USD 7.2 billion. Approximately USD 5.4 billion was invested in R&D. Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Novartis Group companies employ approximately 101,000 people and operate in over 140 countries around the world. For more information, please visit http://www.novartis.com.

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This press release contains statements and conclusions based on projections of Lek’s future business operations. These estimates are derived from the best information currently available. In case these forecasts prove unreliable, the actual results could prove different from those projected.

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For further information contact:

Katarina Klemenc Dinjaški

Corporate Communications

Lek Pharmaceuticals d.d.

Phone: + 386 1 580 22 43

Fax: + 386 1 580 24 32

communications.lek@sandoz.com