Commentary on 'Prebiotics, immune function, infection and inflammation: a review of the evidence'

Tuohy, K. M. (2009) Commentary on 'Prebiotics, immune function, infection and inflammation: a review of the evidence'. British Journal of Nutrition, 101 (5). pp. 631-632. ISSN 0007-1145 doi: 10.1017/s000711450805561x

Abstract/Summary

There is a growing awareness that the gut microbiota and an appropriately functioning immune system play an important role in maintaining human health. Recent population statistics have highlighted some worrying trends, specifically that there is a growing burden of immunological disease in Western populations, that Western populations are ageing, and that obesity, with its strong inflammatory component, is reaching epidemic proportions.