Scientific American: Microbes Manipulate Your Mind
In 2011 French researchers published the results of a small clinical trial examining the antianxiety effects of probiotics. They had 66 patients take either a placebo or a probiotic formulation containing Lactobacillus helveticus and B. longum, two common inhabitants of guts, for a month. The participants were evaluated for anxiety and depression according to widely accepted checklists at the beginning and again at the end of the experiment. At the end of the month the group that took the probiotics showed the greatest decrease in signs of psychological distress as measured through the participants' self-reports.
No comments:
Post a Comment