Microbiome Archives - Today's Practitioner

Non-Probiotics Associated with Improved Anxiety Symptoms Over Just Probiotics

On Today’s Practitioner, we’ve been a champion of reporting on the importance of regulating gut bacteria for mood disorders (see our Mood and Microbiome Resource Center here). A review study including 1,500 participants, published in General Psychiatry, showed that anxiety symptoms might be reduced by taking steps to regulate theRead …

Endurance Exercise Improves the Gut Microbiome

According to recent research, endurance exercise improves the gut microbiome by beneficially modifying gut microbiota composition. This new study shows that after six weeks of training, potentially inflammation causing microbes (Proteobacteria) decreased and microbes that are linked to enhanced metabolism (Akkermansia) increased. Even though there was no significant drop in

The Role of Nutrition and the Gut-Brain Axis in Psychiatry: A Literature Review

Individuals suffering from psychiatric disorders experience high levels of illness burden and a significantly reduced quality of life. Despite targeted psychopharmacological strategies and complementary psychotherapeutic procedures only moderate effects are obtained, and the risk of relapse is high in many patients. This narrative review highlights the important role of nutritionRead …

Is Microbiome Composition Defined by Nurture or Nature? The Answer May Surprise You

Is one’s microbiome composition a question of nature vs nurture? Some microbiome researchers suggest that variations in a person’s microbiome begins with differences in our genes; but a large-scale study conducted at the Weizmann Institute of Science and published in Nature, challenges this idea. The study also provides evidence thatRead …

Link Between Gut Microbiome, Obesity, Diabetes, Depression and Anxiety

Like everyone, people with type 2 diabetes and obesity suffer from depression and anxiety, but even more so. Researchers at Joslin Diabetes Center now have demonstrated a surprising potential contributor to these negative feelings, the gut microbiome. In this animal study, published in Molecular Psychiatry, mice that become obese whenRead …

Effect of Lactobacillus rhamnosus HN001 in Pregnancy on Postpartum Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety

Growing evidence about the microbiome and gut brain axis suggests that taking specific strains of probiotics may be an important aspect of mental health, and more specifically postpartum depression, which affects 10-15% of women. In this study, published by EBioMedicine, a LANCET publication, researchers studied the effects of probiotics supplementationRead …

Microbiota-Mediated Regulation of the Immune System in a Prenatal Immune Activation Model of Autism

In what is being described as cutting-edge research, published in the Journal of Immunology, scientists from the University of Virginia School of Medicine suggest that a mother’s microbiome during pregnancy plays a critical role in determining the child’s risk of developing autism-spectrum disorders. The study raises the possibility that autismRead …

A Comprehensive Summary— Probiotics, Mental and Neurological Health

This article on probiotics, mental and neurological health provides a literature review of the disease-specific probiotic strains studied in published clinical trials in humans and animals as they relate to brain and mental health. The table designs allow for quick access to supportive data related to disease states and areRead …

Free On-Demand Webinar on Supporting Mood Disorders with Scot Bay, MD and Jane Foster, PhD

Popular contributors Scot Bay, MD and Jane Foster, PhD are back with a ready-watch webinar on animal science and clinical research that explains the gut-brain axis and how specific probiotic strains can positively support mood and mental health. Dr. Bay will elaborate on his case studies using probiotic formulas asRead …

The Neurobiology of Stress

At the 2016 Neurobiology of Stress Workshop in Newport Beach, CA, a group of experts presented the symposium The Microbiome: Development, Stress, and Disease, published in Mammalian Genome. This report, coauthored by leading experts Jane Foster, PhD, John Crynan PhD and colleagues, summarizes and builds upon some of the key conceptsRead …