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With modernization and increasing trend towards a healthier society, consumers are concerned about diet, nutrition, and food safety for improved quality of life. Currently, the world is facing a challenge of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection as a global pandemic. Nutritional status has been tagged as one of the biggest risk factors for developing severe illness, including obesity and malnutrition amidst the virus pandemic (James et al., 2020). Healthy, nutritious, and functional foods are the only rational alternatives for survival in the current context that plays a vital role in strengthening the immune system to ward off these diseases (Aman and Masood, 2020).
The emerging consensus among consumers has prompted multi-stakeholders involved in food systems to divert the conventional approach of food production by either adding or increasing the health benefits that make food products more functional. Functional foods exceeds in providing health benefits beyond basic nutrition and are often termed as future foods. For foods to be marketed as a functional, it has to meet certain conditions that include conformation and meeting food safety regulation of a particular country or exporting then meeting international food safety standards, free access, and proof of health benefits when consumed normally as a balanced diet. Such functional foods prevalent in the market include probiotics, prebiotics, dietary supplements, vitamins, antioxidants, dietary fiber, and other phytochemicals (Annunziata and Vecchio, 2013; Cencic and Chingwaru, 2010; Corbo et al., 2014; Granato et al., 2020.
The global food consumption pattern and the emergence of ultra-processed foods have been associated with increased inflammation and other health issues rising to lower immune responsiveness. These dietary changes have been linked to imbalances in the human gut microbiome (Childs et al., 2019; Gibney et al., 2017; Monteiro et al., 2013; Sonnenburg and Sonnenburg, 2019). Researchers have shown probiotics to restore the gut microbiota and modulate the intestinal immune response in viral respiratory infections (Clua et al., 2017; de Vrese et al., 2005; Hao et al., 2015; Winkler et al., 2005). These studies reveal the immune-enhancing benefits of probiotics which has increased consumer demands for more such foods now and in the future.
The established and well-known action mechanisms of probiotics for boosting immunity is shown in Fig. 1. They do so by providing protection against the pathogens, secretion of antimicrobial substances, immunomodulation, production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), and competitive action for adhesion and nutritional sources (Ashaolu, 2020; Wan et al., 2019).
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