A new review has found that probiotics, or a combination of prebiotics and probiotics, may help reduce the symptoms of depression.
A new review of the current research on the effects of prebiotics and probiotics on depression and anxiety symptoms has found that probiotics — either alone or in combination with prebiotics — may help reduce a person’s depression symptoms.
However, the review found that prebiotics and probiotics did not have a statistically significant effect on anxiety. Also, prebiotics on their own did not significantly reduce anxiety or depression symptoms.
While noting that current research on the topics remains limited, the authors of the review make the case for further research to investigate these potentially valuable findings.
The paper appears in the journal BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, depression is a mood disorder that lasts for at least 2 weeks and can have a range of symptoms. These can include feeling sad, angry, irritable, worthless, guilty, or helpless. Some people may be uninterested in hobbies and activities, feel tired, find it hard to concentrate, have trouble sleeping, or even feel suicidal.
About 7% of all adults in the United States have had at least one major depressive episode in the past year.
Treatment for depression usually involves medications, talking therapies, or a combination of both.
A variety of factors, whether biological, genetic, environmental, or psychological, can cause depression. Often, a combination of these is likely to be at play.
According to recent research, one factor that may contribute to depression and mental health issues, more generally, is the gut-brain axis.
The gut-brain axis describes the relationship between a person’s gut microbiome — the ecosystem of microorganisms that live in a person’s gut — and their central nervous system (CNS), which includes the brain and spinal cord.
Signals can pass between a person’s gut microbiome and their CNS, keeping both functioning properly.
As a consequence, experts have speculated that the health of the gut microbiome may affect CNS disorders, including some mental health disorders.
Two key factors in maintaining the health of the gut microbiome are prebiotics and probiotics.
According to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, probiotics contain living microorganisms that contribute to a person’s mic