Edible bird's nest and gut health: Insights into gastrointestinal digestion, intestinal homeostasis, and potential gut-organ axis involvement

Edible bird's nest (EBN) is a traditional tonic food that has attracted widespread attention among Asian populations due to its long history of consumption and rich nutritional value. Existing research indicates that certain glycoproteins in EBN are resistant to degradation by human digestive enzymes, enabling them to be utilized by intestinal bacteria to modulate gut microbiota composition and metabolism, or to exert direct effects within the intestine, improving the local immune microenvironment and strengthening the intestinal barrier, thereby regulating intestinal homeostasis. Concurrently, some evidence suggests that EBN may influence distant organs via the gut-organ axis. This review synthesizes available evidence to summarize the beneficial effects and underlying mechanisms of EBN on intestinal homeostasis, with a focus on its composition and gastrointestinal digestion. We further discuss its potential to mediate systemic health via the gut, with the aim of providing a foundation and direction for future research