How probiotics can prevent cage-free gut health issues

How probiotics, plant-based additives and yeast products could help improve cage-free layer gut health was presented by Dr. Mark Blakley, Quality Technical International (QTI) Poultry Veterinarian, at 2022’s International Production and Processing Expo.

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leksandar Jovanovic | Dreamstime.com
leksandar Jovanovic | Dreamstime.com

How probiotics, plant-based additives and yeast products could help improve cage-free layer gut health was presented by Dr. Mark Blakley, Quality Technical International (QTI) Poultry Veterinarian, at 2022’s International Production and Processing Expo.

Probiotics

According to Blakley, probiotics can suppress harmful gut bacteria effectively and bind mycotoxins to prevent them from being reabsorbed into the body.

“They can help shift the gut flora to a more natural, optimal state for growth and production. They can help control gut inflammation and they can boost the immune system to a degree,” he explained.

“No matter which route they come, feed or drinkers, these bacteria are encouraging of lactic bacilli and the other acid producers, meaning they will reduce gut pH and create an undesirable environment for harmful bacteria to live.”

Probiotics also have a direct effect on Clostridium by taking up important binding sites in the intestine, which helps turn off toxin production.

Blakely highlighted the fact that probiotics will colonize or persist in the intestines for a period of time. “The whole job of probiotics is to make the gut more optimal for life,” he added.

Yeast and plant-based alternatives

Yeast and yeast products, like probiotics, are also able to bind mycotoxins and bacterial toxins to remove them from the body, depending on the yeast structure used.

Blakley went on to explain that plant-based products can have antibacterial, viral, anti-fungal and protozoal properties. Additionally, they can modulate the immune system and interact with the gut wall to improve tight junctions, which can help in improving gut function.

Additionally, Blakely said that plant products can be steamed to extract their essential oils and the individual chemicals utilized to achieve antibacterial effects.

How do we know they work?

While probiotics, plant-based options and yeast have been documented in literature to have a positive effect on gut health, Blakely stressed the importance of developing methods to measure production data, such as egg production, to ensure progress is being made.

“It’s important that we learn as much as we can about other products (outside of antibiotics), and how to best use them, to maximize gut health,” he explained.

“I think ultimately, we'll be working with combinations of these products that will do a better job than what we’re doing now. Because of the way we're looking at these kinds of products, the future looks bright for us,” concluded Blakley.

While Blakley recommends using antibiotics in sick poultry, restrictions in antibiotic usage are making this more difficult. Additionally, because probiotics and other additives are not as potent as antibiotics, they will likely not give the outcome wanted when reacting to a disease situation. Therefore, it’s better to use them preventatively.

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