**1. Introduction**

Poultry is crucial in supplying the burgeoning urban population's growing need for protein rich foods and is one of the young and quickly expanding subsets of animal husbandry [1]. The significance of raising poultry in enhancing the socio-economic conditions of regions that lack sufficient resources cannot be exaggerated. This is due to its features like swift bird generation, concentrated expansion, remarkable efficiency, reduced labor expenses, and minimal resource needs [2]. However, with increasing commercialization, poultry production continues to shift from subsidence agricultural practices to intensive food production, which has consequently increased the occurrence of diseases [3].

Antibiotics (when administered at sub-therapeutic levels) have been shown to be a successful method for illness control, growth enhancement, and feed conversion efficiency during the last several decades [4]. However, unrestricted use of antimicrobial drugs has resulted in their accumulation in terrestrial habitat, which has led to extensively documented adverse outcomes, including the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains, the accumulation of antibiotic remnants in the meat, and changes to the beneficial microbiota of the poultry [5]. There is always a risk associated with transmittance of resistant bacterial genes from poultry animals to humans via nonpathogenic bacteria to human pathogens. Therefore, the use of antibiotics in poultry has become risky [6].

Antibiotic resistance and concerns about food safety associated with overusing antibiotics prompted the European Union in 2006 to prohibit their use in animal feed [7, 8]. As a result, there has been a rise in the search for and use of alternatives to antibiotics, in order to safeguard poultry and human health.

The use of probiotics, often known as beneficial bacteria, suppress diseases in a number of ways, and is increasingly viewed as a substitute for antibiotics [9]. However, the significance of probiotics employed in poultry is not confined to the gastrointestinal system; they also play a noteworthy part in the enhancement of the organism's overall health. This study therefore compiles and assesses the current state of knowledge on probiotics for poultry's health and nutrition.
