The International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics (ISAPP) consensus statement on the definition and scope of gut health

The term ‘gut health’ is increasingly used as a catch-all phrase by many stakeholders, including scientists, health-care professionals, industry and the general public, to describe a wide range of health-related concepts. Despite its widespread use, particularly in relation to studies on diet, fermented foods, biotics and the gut microbiome, it remains unclear what the term gut health means. Therefore, an expert panel was convened by the International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics to address the current state of scientific and clinical knowledge on the physiology, manifestation, application and measurement of the concept of gut health. The panel evaluated the term in the context of the central role of the gastrointestinal tract in health and overall well-being and proposed a definition of gut health as “a state of normal gastrointestinal function without active gastrointestinal disease and gut-related symptoms that affect quality of life”. The definition was developed mindful of the functional, subjective and extrinsic domains that contribute to gut health. In this Consensus Statement, clinically relevant and accessible metrics to assess these domains are reviewed and a comprehensive approach to gut health is proposed that is relevant to clinical practice as well as to studies of dietary and biotic interventions.