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Review
. 2025 Jul 2:15:1546627.
doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2025.1546627. eCollection 2025.

The role of probiotics in adolescents' obesity

Xiao-Ping Chen  1 , Li You  1 , Yong Jia  1
Affiliations
Review

The role of probiotics in adolescents' obesity

Xiao-Ping Chen et al. Front Cell Infect Microbiol. .

Abstract

The prevalence of adolescent obesity continues to rise globally, posing significant public health challenges by affecting both physical and psychological wellness and increasing the risk of metabolic diseases in adulthood. Probiotics may influence obesity through various mechanisms, including restoring gut microbiota balance, reducing chronic inflammation, modulating lipid metabolism, aiding in weight control, and improving metabolic health. This review aims to explore the mechanisms by which probiotics act as key modulators of obesity and summarize current findings from clinical trials involving probiotics in adolescent obesity. The large-scale, multicenter, long-term follow-up randomized controlled trials are necessary to determine the optimal probiotics strains, dosages, and treatment durations, as well as to assess their long-term efficacy and safety in the future. Through such rigorous studies, probiotics have the potential to become a safe, effective, and accessible adjunct in the comprehensive management of adolescent obesity, offering a more holistic approach to health management for this population.

Keywords: adolescence; gut microbiota; lipid metabolism; obesity; probiotics.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be constructed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Benefits of probiotics on obesity.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Flow diagram of study identification, screening, and inclusion in the systematic review.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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