Prebiotics

Prebiotics

Investigating the potential of prebiotics to rebalance and maintain health

Task Force Information

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Task Force Information

Objectives

A prebiotic is a food ingredient that selectively stimulates growth and/or the activity of microbial species inhabiting the host, which may bring about health benefits. A better understanding of mechanisms of prebiotics is still needed. The task force aims at providing mechanistic insights linking prebiotics to individual health benefits.

Task Force Members

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*Scientific Advisor

Contact Information

For more detailed information, please contact Maria Tonti at mtonti@ilsieurope.be

Activity Overview

Ongoing

 

- Markers of the Gut Microbiota

The group aims to identify key markers for assessing microbiota improvement, focusing on measurable indicators of microbiota composition. The activity is shared with the Probiotics Task Force.

Start date: Q4 2024 - End date: Q2 2026

- Role of Prebiotics in Better Managing Women’s Health 

The Expert Group will aim to understand the extent and mechanisms by which prebiotics impact the women’s health in different stages of life.

Start date: Q4 2025 - End date: Q1 2027

In the Pipeline

- Prebiotics and Weight Management

The research group will explore how prebiotics support weight control, both independently and alongside GLP-1 receptor agonists. A workshop on GLP-1 analogues and health outcomes is planned for Q1 2026. The Expert Group will investigate key mechanisms, such as SCFA production, gut hormone stimulation, and microbiome modulation—with a focus on enhancing satiety, metabolic regulation, and treatment adherence. A key objective is to evaluate whether prebiotics can help reduce GLP-1–related side effects, such as gastrointestinal discomfort.

Expected kick-off: Q1 2026

Expert Groups

Markers of the Gut Microbiota

Background and Objectives

The aim of this activity is to establish standardized markers for assessing improvements in gut microbiota composition and activity resulting from dietary interventions. This involves identifying and evaluating relevant markers, such as microbial metabolites, for their predictive value regarding health outcomes and pinpointing overlooked indicators that may be crucial for assessing human health status. The activity aims to integrate various targets, including microbiota composition, enzymatic systems, microbial metabolites, mucosal integrity, and immune response, to enhance the accuracy and predictive power of these evaluations. This approach will help link changes in gut microbiota to health benefits from prebiotics and support the development of consistent and informative parameters for human studies.

Output

This activity will result in a Perspective Paper.

Expert Group Members

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Role of Prebiotics in Better Managing Women’s Health 

Background and Objectives

Women’s health is strongly shaped by hormonal fluctuations across critical life stages such as pregnancy and menopause, which influence the composition and function of gut and vaginal microbiota, with significant implications for immunity, metabolism, and overall well-being. Despite growing evidence of the microbiota’s role in modulating hormone-related health outcomes, the specific interactions between hormonal changes, microbiota, and prebiotic interventions remain underexplored. Furthermore, transgender individuals undergoing gender-affirming hormonal therapies experience unique microbiota dynamics that also require targeted study. This activity aims to review and synthesize current knowledge on how hormonal shifts affect microbiota and to identify opportunities for developing life-stage- and gender-sensitive prebiotic interventions. By addressing these gaps, the objective is to guide the design of prebiotics that improve metabolic, immune, cardiovascular, and cognitive health in women and transgender individuals, ultimately supporting more inclusive and personalized approaches to healthcare.

Output

This activity will result in a Narrative Review. 

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Publications

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Prebiotics in food and dietary supplements: a roadmap to EU health claims

Gut Microbes, 2024

  • ILSI Europe

Numerous studies have established that prebiotic ingredients in foods and dietary supplements may play a role in supporting human health. Over the three decades that have passed since prebiotics were first defined as a concept, research has revealed a complex universe of prebiotic-induced changes to the human microbiota. There are strong indications of a direct link between these prebiotic-induced changes and specific health benefits.

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		Abstract
	

	
Numerous studies have established that prebiotic ingredients in foods and dietary supplements may play a role in supporting human health. Over the three decades that have passed since prebiotics were first defined as a concept, research has revealed a complex universe of prebiotic-induced changes to the human microbiota. There are strong indications of a direct link between these prebiotic-induced changes and specific health benefits. However, at the present time, the EU has not permitted use of the term 'prebiotic' in connection with an approved health claim. This paper is the outcome of a workshop organized on the 25th October 2023 by the European branch of the International Life Science Institute (ILSI). It provides an overview of the regulatory requirements for authorized health claims in the EU, key areas of prebiotic research, and findings to date in relation to prebiotics and digestive, immune, metabolic and cognitive health. Research gaps and documentation challenges are then explored and a roadmap proposed for achieving authorization of 'prebiotic' in the wording of future EU health claims.



		Introductory video
	

	



		One-pager
	

				

			
						Read the full article
					
	
Commissioned by the Prebiotics Task Force



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Humans often show variable responses to dietary, prebiotic, and probiotic interventions. Emerging evidence indicates that the gut microbiota is a key determinant for this population heterogeneity. Here, we provide an overview of some of the major computational and experimental tools being applied to critical questions of microbiota-mediated personalized nutrition and health. First, we discuss the latest advances in in silico modeling of the microbiota-nutrition-health axis, including the application of statistical, mechanistic, and hybrid artificial intelligence models. Second, we address high-throughput in vitro techniques for assessing inter-individual heterogeneity, from ex vivo batch culturing of stool and continuous culturing in anaerobic bioreactors, to more sophisticated organ-on-a-chip models that integrate both host and microbial compartments. Third, we explore in vivo approaches for better understanding personalized, microbiota-mediated responses to diet, prebiotics, and probiotics, from non-human animal models and human observational studies, to human feeding trials and crossover interventions. We highlight examples of existing, consumer-facing precision nutrition platforms that are currently leveraging the gut microbiota. Furthermore, we discuss how the integration of a broader set of the tools and techniques described in this piece can generate the data necessary to support a greater diversity of precision nutrition strategies. Finally, we present a vision of a precision nutrition and healthcare future, which leverages the gut microbiota to design effective, individual-specific interventions.


Download the full article here


or click on the image below to download the one-pager summary.

				
				One-pager PRE PRO EG Prediction of indv. responses
				
	
Commissioned by the Prebiotics and Probiotics Task Forces.



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