World Journal of
Pharmaceutical and Life Sciences

ROLE OF PROBIOTICS BEVERAGES IN HUMAN HEALTH: A REVIEW

*Rajneesh Kumar and U. V. S. Teotia

ABSTRACT

Probiotics, which means ?for life?, have been used for centuries as natural components in health promoting food. They have a long history of association with dairy products because some of the same bacteria that are associated with fermented dairy products also make their home in different sites in the human body. Probiotics, live cells with different beneficiary characteristics, have been extensivelly studied and explored commercially in many different products in the world. Their benefits to human and animal health have been proven in hundreds of scientific research. Lactoba-cillus and Bifidobacterium are the main probiotic groups; however, there are reports on the probiotic potential of Pediococcus, Lactococcus, Bacillus and yeasts. Some of the identified probiotic strains exhibit powerful anti-inflammatory, antiallergic and other important pro-perties. Apart from that, the consumption of dairy and non-dairy products stimulates the immunity in different ways. Various food matrices have been used with probiotics, which are briefly documented. In this review, the history of probiotics, their application in the health and food areas and new trends in probiotic products and processes are presented.

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