Psychobiotics: Probiotics For Mood And Mental Health

Welcome to my blog post where I introduce psychobiotics.

• What are psychobiotics?
• How do they work?
• What are good options to try?

You may also be interested in this blog post that details the health benefits of sauna therapy:

• Getting To The Guts Of Migraines: click here.
• Irritable Bowel Syndrome & Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: click here.
• SIBO: Natural Treatment Considerations: click here.
• Can Our Gut Health And Microbiome Effect Our Mental Health? click here.

What Are Psychobiotics?

Psychobiotics were previously defined as live bacteria (probiotics) which, when ingested, confer mental health benefits through interactions with commensal gut bacteria. The definition has recently been expanded to encompass prebiotics, which enhance the growth of beneficial gut bacteria.

Psychobiotics are beneficial bacteria (probiotics) or support for such bacteria (prebiotics) that influence bacteria–brain relationships

What Is The Psychobiotic Diet?

The psychobiotic diet was discussed in the brilliant book ‘The Psychobiotic Revolution‘ by Scott Anderson. Eating a psychobiotic diet means:

• Minimising sugar
• Eating plenty of Omega 3’s
• Drinking less alcohol
• Eating lots of antioxidants (so lots of fresh fruit and vegetables)
• Avoiding emulsifiers

Living a psychobiotic lifestyle means also including:

• Plenty of exercise
• Intermittent fasting – fasting has been shown to improve our microbiome diversity, and increasing the abundance of a key bacteria called Akkermansia.
• Maintaining a healthy weight

What Can Psychobiotics Help With?

 

Examples Of Psychobiotics In The UK:

Ideal Bowel Support

Ideal Bowel Support includes the strain Lactobacillus Plantarum 299v.

Click here to order.

Saccharomyces Boulardii

The yeast probiotic Saccharomyces boulardii is one of the probiotics recommended for the prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhoea.

Click here to order.

VSL#3

A study published in 2020 found that “VSL#3 has a therapeutic or preventive effect in various systemic diseases per a large number of studies, including digestive systemic diseases (gastrointestinal diseases and hepatic diseases), obesity and diabetes, allergic diseases, nervous systemic diseases, atherosclerosis, bone diseases, and female reproductive systemic diseases.”

Click here to order.

Culturelle

Since its isolation, Culturelle has become “one of the best clinically documented probiotic strains. A growing body of evidence suggests benefits such as prevention and relief of various types of diarrhoea, and treatment of relapsing Clostridium difficile colitis.”

Click here to order.

Florastor

Florastor is the only probiotic with Saccharomyces boulardii lyo CNCM I-745—a unique probiotic strain with over 60 years of use and research. When taken daily, Florastor helps increase the natural flora in your digestive tract and support your overall health.

Click here to order.

Align Probiotic

Align contains Bifidobacterium 35624

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Mutaflor

Mutaflor contains the unique probiotic active ingredient Escherichia coli strain Nissle 1917.

 

References

• Psychobiotics and the Manipulation of Bacteria–Gut–Brain Signals: click here.
• Psychobiotics: A new approach for treating mental illness?: click here.
• Psy’biotics in mental health, neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental disorders: click here.
• Finding the needle in the haystack: systematic identification of psychobiotics: click here.
• From Probiotics to Psychobiotics: Live Beneficial Bacteria Which Act on the Brain-Gut Axis: click here.
• Probiotics and Psy’biotics: the Role of Microbial Neurochemicals: click here.
• The effects of psychobiotics on the microbiota-gut-brain axis in early-life stress and neuropsychiatric disorders: click here.
• Psychobiotics: Mechanisms of Action, Evaluation Methods and Effectiveness in Applications with Food Products: click here.