Incorporating probiotics in our daily food consumption to combat antibiotic resistance

Abstract

An increase in antibiotic resistance throughout the globe threatens the survival of these lifesaving drugs (ABR). One of the most pressing global health issues is antibiotic resistance, which develops when bacteria or fungi acquire resistance mechanisms that make them vulnerable to treatment with the most used antimicrobials. Animals reared for human consumption are well-recognized as large reservoirs of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and antibiotics used in food and agriculture have contributed to the present worldwide ABR issue. Exploring alternative probiotics is one of the many treatment options with promising effects. In the present study several mechanisms by which probiotics inhibit the growth of pathogenic bacteria have been described. These include probiotics' ability to alter the gut microbiota's composition, adhere to the mucosa and epithelium on favorable terms, strengthen the gut epithelial barrier, and modulate the host immune system. Some of the most widely eaten foods daily are poultry, fish, dairy, fruit, and vegetable items. In this study it was also found that many important antibiotics such as rifampin, cotrimoxazole, beta-lactams, spectinomycin, oxytetracycline, streptomycin, and many more are used during production to promote growth, maximize yield, and reduce disease risk of animals and plants; however, this practice increases the likelihood of the emergence and spread of microbial resistance in those settings and posses a threat to the safety of the foods produced as a result (due to antimicrobial residues). Estimates show that more than 60% of all antibiotics made are used in the chicken industry. To reduce the overuse of antibiotics, this review paper explores the potential function of probiotics, and how they operate to reduce infection for example modification of microbial population, competitive adhesion to the epithelial receptor, production of a specific substance, and so on, how they affect growth performance and immunological response, such as systemic immunological response, local immunological response and how they might be incorporated into the production of poultry, dairy, aquaculture sector, fruits, and vegetables