Probiotics, prebiotics, and synbiotics: Current status and future uses for human health

Probiotics, prebiotics, and synbiotics have been extensively investigated in the past few decades for several health benefits imparted by them. These are commonly known as functional foods which have been known to modify, alter, or reestablish the microbial flora of human body. They are also held responsible for carrying out the smooth functioning of our immune system. Probiotics are live microbial strains, which upon ingestion enhance the functioning of human intestine. On the other hand, prebiotics are undigested or partially digested components of food that are usually taken as regular diet. Synbiotic is a combination of probiotic and prebiotic component in which the presence of prebiotic enhances the activity of probiotic microbial strain. Several studies based on the role of prebiotics, probiotics, and synbiotics have rendered them as a promising tool in improvising human health. Although the long-term effect of these functional foods on human health is not clear, several reports clearly indicate that these functional food components exert a positive effect on human body. This chapter summarizes the available literature on the effects of prebiotics, probiotics, and synbiotics on improving human health along with the current trends and developments in this field. A brief account of future work related to these functional foods has also been covered in order to get a better insight into the mode of action of these components.