Prebiotics vs probiotics
There is considerable scientific evidence that intestinal microbiota is key of general health, not just gut health. How can prebiotics and probiotics help, and which should be preferred?
Benefits of healthy microbiota
As 70% of immunity capacity comes from the intestine and as the brain gut axis is now better understood, scientific literature widely demonstrates the benefits of a healthy microbiota. Moreover, several diseases like obesity, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s have been shown to be linked to unbalanced microbiota. Microbiota modulation is therefore an important approach for many diseases, both in human and animal medicine.
Beyond antibiotherapy
Until recently, antibiotics were used to limit the proliferation of potentially harmful bacteria. But we know that antibiotics destroy many other useful bacteria, and this is now negatively perceived for its impact on the environment.
Beyond antibiotherapy, there are only three ways to modulate microbiota: prebiotics, probiotics and faecal transplantation. Looking at prebiotics and postbiotics in particular, there is plenty of scientific literature on their benefits in many species including humans, fish, chickens and pigs. But there is much less when it comes to dogs and cats.
Probiotics
Proposed benefits of probiotics include blocking intestinal pathogenic bacterial effects, regulation of intestinal epithelial cell functions, regulation of mucosal immune responses, effects on the general immune function and synthesis of vitamins or enzymes. For instance, Lactobacillus synthetises B vitamins and some of the proteolytic and lipolytic digestive enzymes.
However, for different reasons like EU regulation and patent protections, the opportunities to use probiotics in pet nutrition in Europe are still quite limited. There are only three EU-approved probiotic strains for use with dogs and two for cats.
Prebiotics
In contrast, there is a wide choice of prebiotics available for pet nutrition, like fructans, FOS, GOS, XOS, SOS, lactulose and resistant starch. Although the same principle applies to all of them, they do not all have the same scientific backup, especially for dogs and cats. Generally speaking though, because prebiotics are the substrate necessary for the growth of ‘good bacteria’, we can expect prebiotics to deliver at least the same benefits as those proposed by probiotics, without the constraints listed above.
The winner is…
Thus, prebiotics are by far the safest and simplest way to modulate microbiota. They can be given every day in the food, with the best ratio costs–benefits. Among prebiotics, short chain fructo oligosaccharides (scFOS) are the subject of the highest number of scientific publications regarding their specific benefits in pets, allowing pet food manufacturers to make nutritional claims.
- A is a nondigestible selectively fermented food ingredient that results in specific changes in the composition and/or activity of the gastrointestinal microbiota.
- Probiotics are live microorganisms which when administered in adequate amounts confer a health benefit on the host.
- Faecal transplantation is the transfer of stool from a healthy donor into the gastrointestinal tract to treat recurrent diseases.