Consumption of prebiotic like foods and/or prebiotic supplements balance and restore a dysbiotic gastrointestinal environment caused by negative factors including diet, certain medication use, physical and psychological stressors.

While complex, it is thought they do this by increasing microbial diversity and key bacterial species that produce a variety of end products including short chain fatty acids.

Prebiotic mechanisms:

1. increase Bifidobacterium spp.
2. increase lactobacillus spp.
3. increase faecalibacterium prausnitzi,
4. increase in Roseburia spp.
5. increase in Eubacterium spp.
6. decrease beta-glucuronidase activity
7. decrease faecal concentrations of protein putrefactive by products and pathogenic bacteria