Psychobiotics: Probiotics That May Impact Mood
What are pychobiotics? They're mind-altering probiotics that researchers say can enhance the gut-brain connection, boosting mood, decreasing anxiety, and easing depression, among other benefits.
It’s hard to believe that by altering the bacteria in your gut, you can better handle stress, improve your mood, and even treat your anxiety or depression. But an explosion of research into the fascinating world of the gut-brain connection is showing just that. We now know that you can alter your gut bacteria in a way that positively affects your mood and brain function. One of the primary ways you can do this is by taking psychobiotics.
So What Are Psychobiotics?
Psychobiotics are live organisms that, when ingested in adequate amounts, produce a health benefit in patients suffering from psychiatric illness.
But this definition, coined in 2013, is too limiting based on the latest research showing that you don’t need to have clinical depression, an anxiety disorder, or some other psychiatric disorder in order for psychobiotics to positively affect your brain.
Anyone suffering from chronic stress, low mood, or anxiety-like symptoms has the potential to benefit from this class of probiotics.
How Do Psychobiotics Act on the Brain?
One way these “mind-altering” probiotics likely act is via their ability to produce various biologically active compounds, such as neurotransmitters. Several molecules with neuroactive functions such as gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), serotonin, catecholamines, and acetylcholine can be produced by gut bacteria. When these neurotransmitters are secreted within the gut, they may trigger cells within the gut’s lining to release molecules that signal brain function and affect behavior.
A second way that psychobiotics appear to act on the brain is by exerting effects on the body’s stress response system, which involves the brain and the adrenal glands. This system, known as the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, becomes dysfunctional in the context of chronic stress or illness. When HPA-axis dysfunction occurs, the production and rhythmic timing of cortisol and other stress-related hormones becomes disrupted. This is believed to play a central role in causing mood disorders and cognitive problems.
A third way psychobiotics are hypothesized to act on the brain is through their anti-inflammatory actions. Chronically elevated levels of inflammation throughout the body and brain are now known to be one of the major underlying causes of depression and other mood and cognitive disorders. This inflammation can stem from the gut, and some psychobiotics may have their effects in the brain by lowering inflammation.
Which Probiotics Are Psychobiotics?
Research is beginning to identify which probiotics have mild-altering effects and what those effects are. In studies in healthy people, different psychobiotics have been shown to boost mood and cognitive function and decrease stress and anxiety-like symptoms.
Certain psychobiotics have also been shown to treat depression, anxiety, and other mental health and cognitive issues in patients with psychological disorders and/or other medical conditions.
Psychobiotics for Depression and Anxiety
A clinical trial randomly assigned patients with major depressive disorder to receive either probiotic supplements or placebo for eight weeks. The probiotic pills consisted of Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus casei, and Bifidobacterium bifidum (2 billion CFUs each).
After eight weeks, patients who received the probiotic had significantly decreased total scores on the Beck Depression Inventory, a widely used test to measure the severity of depression, compared with placebo. In addition, they had significant decreases in systemic inflammation as measured by hs-CRP, significantly lower insulin levels, reduced insulin resistance, and a significant rise in glutathione, the body’s master antioxidant.
Other psychobiotics have beneficial consequences on mood and anxiety-like symptoms in people without depressive or anxiety disorders.
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