Why Probiotics?

According to the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations and the World Health Organization, probiotics are defined as ‘living microorganisms, which when administered in adequate amounts confer health benefits on the host’ [Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations et al. 2006].

Nobel laureate Elie Metchnikoff introduced the concept of probiotics to the scientific community. He published a seminal report linking the longevity of Bulgarians with consumption of fermented milk products containing viable Lactobacilli [Metchnikoff and Mitchell, 1907].

This observation suggested that certain microbes, when ingested, could be beneficial for human health. Since then, probiotics had been widely marketed and consumed, mostly as dietary supplements or functional foods.

Mechanisms of probiosis include manipulation of intestinal microbial communities, suppression of pathogens, immunomodulation, stimulation of epithelial cell proliferation and differentiation and fortification of the intestinal barrier

By Peera Hemarajata and James Versalovic (Effects of probiotics on gut microbiota: mechanisms of intestinal immunomodulation and neuromodulation)