Probiotics are being used for an ever-expanding range of clinical applications. Every year research reveals novel uses for probiotics. No longer are they used solely for conditions associated with disturbance of the GIT microbiota.

These uses can be divided into traditional and novel to better illustrate this expansion:

 

Traditional uses are, for the most part, gastrointestinal in origin. These have been the most common uses for probiotics for the past 40 years and are still common reasons for taking probiotic preparations.

Novel uses are based on research that has been conducted in the past 15 years. As can be seen, there is a substantial increase in the number of uses of probiotics and they are now being used for a number of systemic conditions.