Prebiotic (nutrition)

For information about foods and dietary supplements with potentially beneficial bacteria, see Probiotic.

The word prebiotic has two separate and disparate meanings:

Before Life

From the roots pre (meaning before) and biotic (referring to life), the word prebiotic can refer to the time before life appeared on the earth or any other planet with the capacity to harbor it.

Category of Functional Food

Prebiotics are defined as: Non digestible food ingredients, that beneficially affect the host by selectively stimulating the growth and/or activity of one or a limited number of bacteria in the colon, and thus improve host health (Gibson and Roberfroid, 1995).

Most potential prebiotics are carbohydrates (such as oligosaccharide), but the definition does not exclude non-carbohydrates to be used as a prebiotic.

The definition does not emphasize a specific bacterial group. Often, however, it is assumed that a prebiotic should increase the number and/or activity of bifidobacteria and lactic acid bacteria, as these groups of bacteria are claimed to have several beneficial effects on the host. A product that stimulates (or claims to stimulate) bifidobacteria is considered a bifidogenic factor. Some prebiotics may thus also act as a bifidogenic factor and vice versa, but the two concepts are not identical.

Typical dietary sources of prebiotics are Jerusalem artichokes which contain Inulin, raw oats, and unrefined wheat or barley. The prebiotic oligosaccharides that naturally occur in breast milk are believed to play an important role in the development of a healthy immune system in infants.

Prebiotic oligosaccharides may be added to processed foods. Some prebiotics that are used in this manner are fructooligosaccharides (FOS), xylooligosaccharides (XOS), and galactooligosaccharides.

External links

• The Paleobiotics Lab
• Intelligent Nutrition
• More reading on prebiotics :Food-Info.net on prebiotics and bifidogenic factors
• International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics