Synbiotics
Encyclopedia
Synbiotics refer to nutritional supplements combining probiotics and prebiotics in a form of synergism, hence synbiotics.
Probiotics are live bacteria which are intended to colonize the large intestine and confer physiological health benefits to the host. A prebiotic is a food or dietary supplement product that confers a health benefit on the host associated with modulating the microbiota. Prebiotics are not drugs, not functioning because of absorption of the component, not due to the component acting directly on the host, and are due to changes to the resident bacteria - either changing the proportions of the resident bacteria or the activities thereof. Measurable changes to the microbiota in the absence of a desirable physiological consequence in the host does not quality as a prebiotic. A prebiotic may be a fiber, but a fiber is not necessarily a prebiotic.
Using prebiotics and probiotics in combination is often described as synbiotic, but the United Nations Food & Agriculture Organization (FAO) recommends that the term “synbiotic” be used only if the net health benefit is synergistic. A further restriction is to require that the prebiotic be shown to increase the population and/or function of the probiotic it is paired with.
Examples
Probiotics are live bacteria which are intended to colonize the large intestine and confer physiological health benefits to the host. A prebiotic is a food or dietary supplement product that confers a health benefit on the host associated with modulating the microbiota. Prebiotics are not drugs, not functioning because of absorption of the component, not due to the component acting directly on the host, and are due to changes to the resident bacteria - either changing the proportions of the resident bacteria or the activities thereof. Measurable changes to the microbiota in the absence of a desirable physiological consequence in the host does not quality as a prebiotic. A prebiotic may be a fiber, but a fiber is not necessarily a prebiotic.
Using prebiotics and probiotics in combination is often described as synbiotic, but the United Nations Food & Agriculture Organization (FAO) recommends that the term “synbiotic” be used only if the net health benefit is synergistic. A further restriction is to require that the prebiotic be shown to increase the population and/or function of the probiotic it is paired with.
Examples
- bifidobacteria and fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS)
- Lactobacillus rhamnosusLactobacillus rhamnosusLactobacillus rhamnosus is a bacterium that was originally considered to be a subspecies of L. casei, but later genetic research found it to be a species of its own. Some strains of L. rhamnosus are being used as probiotics. The species is sometimes used in yogurt and other dairy products. Some...
GG and inulinInulinInulins are a group of naturally occurring polysaccharides produced by many types of plants. They belong to a class of fibers known as fructans. Inulin is used by some plants as a means of storing energy and is typically found in roots or rhizomes...
s - bifidobacteria or lactobacilli with FOS or inulins or galactooligosaccharidesGalactooligosaccharidesGalacto-oligosaccharides , also known as oligogalactosyllactose, oligogalactose, oligolactose or transgalactooligosaccharides , belong, because of their indigestible nature, to the group of prebiotics. Prebiotics are defined as non-digestible food ingredients that beneficially affect the host by...
(GOS)