Synbiotics refer to
food ingredient
An ingredient is a substance that forms part of a mixture (in a general sense). For example, in cooking, recipes specify which ingredients are used to prepare a specific dish. Many commercial products contain secret ingredients that are purpor ...
s or
dietary supplements combining
probiotic
Probiotics are live microorganisms promoted with claims that they provide health benefits when consumed, generally by improving or restoring the gut microbiota. Probiotics are considered generally safe to consume, but may cause bacteria- host ...
s and
prebiotics
Prebiotics are compounds in food that induce the growth or activity of beneficial microorganisms such as bacteria and fungi. The most common example is in the gastrointestinal tract, where prebiotics can alter the composition of organisms in the ...
in a form of
synergism, hence synbiotics. The synbiotic concept was first introduced as "mixtures of probiotics and prebiotics that beneficially affect the host by improving the survival and implantation of live microbial dietary supplements in the
gastrointestinal tract, by selectively stimulating the growth and/or by activating the metabolism of one or a limited number of health-promoting
bacteria
Bacteria (; singular: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one Cell (biology), biological cell. They constitute a large domain (biology), domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometr ...
, thus improving host welfare". As of 2018, the research on this concept is preliminary, with no high-quality evidence from
clinical research
Clinical research is a branch of healthcare science that determines the safety and effectiveness ( efficacy) of medications, devices, diagnostic products and treatment regimens intended for human use. These may be used for prevention, treatm ...
that such benefits exist.
Synbiotics may be complementary synbiotics, where each component is independently chosen for its potential effect on host health, or synergistic synbiotics, where the prebiotic component is chosen to support the activity of the chosen probiotic.
Research is evaluating if synbiotics can be optimized, (known as 'optibiotics')
which are purported to enhance the growth and health benefits of existing probiotics.
Probiotics are live bacteria which are intended to colonize the large intestine, although as of 2018, there is no evidence that adding dietary bacteria to healthy people has any added effect.
A prebiotic is a food or dietary supplement product that may induce the growth or activity of beneficial microorganisms. A prebiotic may be a
fiber
Fiber or fibre (from la, fibra, links=no) is a natural or artificial substance that is significantly longer than it is wide. Fibers are often used in the manufacture of other materials. The strongest engineering materials often incorpora ...
, but a fiber is not necessarily a prebiotic.
Using prebiotics and probiotics in combination may be described as synbiotic, but the
United Nations Food & Agriculture Organization
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)french: link=no, Organisation des Nations unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture; it, Organizzazione delle Nazioni Unite per l'Alimentazione e l'Agricoltura is an intern ...
recommends that the term "synbiotic" be used only if the net health benefit is synergistic. Synbiotic formulations in combination with pasteurized breast milk are under preliminary clinical research for their potential to ameliorate
necrotizing enterocolitis
Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a devastating intestinal disease that affects premature or very low birth weight infants.Gephart S.M., Quinn M. A call to action to fight for equity and end necrotizing enterocolitis disparities. ''Adv. Neonata ...
in infants, although there was insufficient evidence to warrant recommending synbiotics for this use as of 2016.
Examples
*
Bifidobacteria
''Bifidobacterium'' is a genus of gram-positive, nonmotile, often branched anaerobic bacteria. They are ubiquitous inhabitants of the gastrointestinal tract though strains have been isolated from the vagina and mouth ('' B. dentium'') of mamma ...
and
Fructooligosaccharide
Fructooligosaccharides (FOS) also sometimes called oligofructose or oligofructan, are oligosaccharide fructans, used as an alternative sweetener. FOS exhibits sweetness levels between 30 and 50 percent of sugar in commercially prepared syrups. It ...
s (FOS)
* Bifidobacteria or lactobacilli with FOS or inulins or
galactooligosaccharides
Galactooligosaccharides (GOS), also known as oligogalactosyllactose, oligogalactose, oligolactose or transgalactooligosaccharides (TOS), belong to the group of prebiotics. Prebiotics are defined as non-digestible food ingredients that beneficiall ...
(GOS)
* ''
Lactobacillus rhamnosus
''Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus'' (previously ''Lactobacillus rhamnosus'') is a bacterium that originally was considered to be a subspecies of '' L. casei'', but genetic research found it to be a separate species in the ''L. casei'' clade, which ...
'' GG and
inulin
Inulins are a group of naturally occurring polysaccharides produced by many types of plants, industrially most often extracted from chicory. The inulins belong to a class of dietary fibers known as fructans. Inulin is used by some plants as a m ...
s
*
Polyphenol
Polyphenols () are a large family of naturally occurring organic compounds characterized by multiples of phenol units. They are abundant in plants and structurally diverse. Polyphenols include flavonoids, tannic acid, and ellagitannin, some o ...
References
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Prebiotics (nutrition)
Probiotics
Bacteriology
Digestive system
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