Prebiotics Mechanism of Action: An Over View

Abstract Prebiotics are nondigestible carbohydrate found abundantly in fruits and vegetables, which play a potential role in maintaining human health. In the intestine, prebiotics selectively enhance the fermentation activity of certain group of beneficial microbes and release short-chain oligosaccharide or fatty acid into the blood stream that consequently reaches the distant organs. Given the prominence of its health benefits, prebiotics have been supplemented in numerous dairy, meat products, and beverages. In addition, it has also been added in food items to improve taste, texture, enhances foam stability, and emulsion. Despite having myriad health benefits, prebiotics with special characteristic features, namely, safety, ease of production, and storage, have been a fascinating candidate in maintaining human health as a replacement in association with probiotics. In this chapter, we made an attempt to exemplify an over view on the mechanism of action of prebiotics in protecting certain human diseases.