Abstract
Diet plays a crucial role in maintaining animal health, productivity, and reproductive performance. Among dietary elements, antioxidants from herbal essential oils are particularly important for stimulating growth performance, reproduction, and immune competence in animal production, especially while their replacement with synthetic antioxidants has no adverse side effects. Recent developments in nanotechnology have improved essential oils' absorption while protecting their bio-compounds. Despite its potential to improve animal health and performance, Nanotechnology has been underutilized in animal nutrition. Nano-encapsulation can cause enhance the herbal essential oil's antioxidant, antimutagenic, anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulatory effects, plus prolonged shelf life, improved physicochemical stability, and controlled release of herbal essential oils. Therefore, herbal essential oils encapsulated with bioactive substances such as phenol, flavonoid, carotenoid, vitamins, and minerals can improve the health and performance of animals. They can be added to both drinking water and feed, where they can be efficiently delivered and fulfill their beneficial effects on the animals. All perspectives on nano-encapsulated herbal essential oils will be discussed in this review, emphasizing their effects on poultry.