The use of some herbal plants as effective alternatives to antibiotic growth enhancers in poultry nutrition

SUMMARYMedicines derived from plant sources are called phytobiotics or botanical medicine. For therapeutic purposes different parts (flowers, fruits, roots, leaves, seeds, bark and berries) or whole plants are utilised. Phytobiotic feed additives can be defined as plants/herbs derived products added to the feed in order to improve the performance of animals. The improvement of performance of broiler and layer chickens as well as their product's quality may be due to multi-directional effects by phytobiotics like decreasing gastrointestinal tract (GIT) microbial population by direct antimicrobial effects or indirectly through increasing mucous secretion in the gut and inhibiting bacterial adhesion to cell membranes, modification of GIT bacterial population through the competitive exclusion of certain type of population and making environment favourable for others, stimulation of digestive secretions and improvement of nutrient absorption, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects. This review highlights the description of some selected herbs and the potential application and health benefits of phytobiotics and their derived products in poultry nutrition.