Probiotics for Health
Did you know that Probiotics can help your mood?
For thousands of years, clinicians have observed a connection between the gut, brain, and overall health. Hippocrates is famously quoted as saying “all disease begins in the gut.” This should not come as a surprise to anyone who has ever experienced gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms like diarrhea, indigestion, or abdominal discomfort in response to changes in their emotional state. The gut and brain communicate through neural, endocrine and immune pathways. It has become increasingly clear that interactions with intestinal microbiota play an important part in this communication.
Recent insights into the role of the human microbiota in cognitive and affective functioning have led to the hypothesis that probiotic supplementation may act as an adjuvant strategy to ameliorate or prevent depression. In a recent research study (Reference below), 20 healthy participants without current mood disorder received a 4-week probiotic food-supplement intervention, while 20 control participants received an inert placebo for the same period. In the pre- and post-intervention assessment, cognitive reactivity to sad mood was assessed using the revised Leiden index of depression sensitivity scale. It was exciting to see that the participants who received the 4-week multispecies probiotics intervention showed significantly reduced depression, less repetitive negative thoughts and less aggressive thoughts. Yeah probiotics!
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