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Limitations to current science

  • Prebiotic foods and ingredients used in products are considered safe.
  • The ‘capacity’ of a prebiotic ingredient to exert an effect on the microbial ecosystem is dependent on the microbes present in the gut to ferment them.
  • The main adverse effects are gastrointestinal symptoms of bloating, distension, and increased flatulence.
  • Effect on sport performance is varied, because of a high degree of inter-individual variation in response.
  • There remain some conflicting results regarding therapeutic outcomes e.g., FOS has not shown benefits in reducing symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome but GOS has.
  • Allergies to prebiotics ingredients are rare but have been reported.

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