5 Brain and Mental Health Conditions Linked to Your Gut It’s a relatively new scientific discovery that the bacteria living in your gut influence your overall health and according to a growing body of research, your mental health too. Your gut bacteria help build your immune system and influence many aspects of health, from your weight to risk of certain diseases, like diabetes and autoimmune, heart, and colon conditions. Science confirms that your microbiome directly impacts your brain, and in turn, your mental health and behavior. There several ways in which your gut could be influencing your brain:

Your Microbiome is Unique

You have trillions of bacteria, viruses, and fungi living inside and on you in numerous ecosystems, known as microbiomes. These micro-organisms play an important role in health and disease. Gut microbes determine how your body breaks down carbohydrates, fiber, and protein to regulate energy. They also influence your body’s inflammatory response, stress resilience, neurological function. There is even proof that they impact mental strength.

The bacteria inside you eat what you eat, and turn your food into molecules that influence your brain through what’s known as the “gut-brain axis.” What goes into your mouth affects the bacteria inside you and, in turn, your health in a surprisingly short period of time. One study found that the bacteria in peoples’ guts shifted within three to four days of a major diet change.

Your body’s unique collection of microbes is partly inherited from your mother at birth and partly determined by your lifestyle, environment, and diet. The modern lifestyle can be toxic to gut bacteria. Antibiotics, medications, chemicals, douches and colonics, medical procedures, chemotherapy and radiation, antidepressants and sleeping pills, altered fat in food, sugar and carbohydrate intake, and more can drastically alter the diversity and number of bacteria in your gut.

Your Gut Communicates With Your Brain

Your gut and brain are closely connected and communicate directly with each other through the gut-brain axis. This gut-brain connection is a bidirectional highway that transmits critical data between the GI tract and the brain. It is made up of neurons, hormones, and proteins.

The microbiome can also influence brain activity through the vagus nerve. It runs from your neck to your abdomen connecting internal organs to the brainstem. It’s the body’s major parasympathetic nerve responsible for basic functions, like the gag reflex, slowing the heart rate, controlling sweating, regulating blood pressure, stimulating the gastrointestinal tract, and controlling vascular tone. The vagus nerve is a physical pathway between the gut and brain. The gut-brain axis is a chemical pathway.

It’s not exactly clear how the microbiome alters the brain, but it’s probably via multiple mechanisms, including neural, hormonal, and immune systems. Scientists have found that gut bacteria produce neurotransmitters which play a key role in determining moods. Your gut also generates neuroactive chemicals and makes proteins that carry messages to the brain. Additionally, your microbiome is intertwined with your immune system, which itself influences your mood and behavior.

Brain and Mental Health Conditions Linked to Your Microbiome

According to the article, What Is Your Gut Telling You?, “There’s a good chance your microbiome is associated with every disease you can think of.” And, it’s possible that in the future, altering gut bacteria could be a front-line treatment for neurodevelopmental and mental disorders. Here are six mental health conditions that have been linked to the microbiome. 5 Brain and Mental Health Conditions Linked to Your Gut

Anxiety and Depression

Experiments by Nobuyuki Sudo in 2004 showed that germ-free mice born and raised with no bacteria had different reactions to stress than normal mice. Since those early experiments, researchers have shown that the relationship between the gut and stress, anxiety, and depression can be causal. Many experiments have shown that you can transmit depression by transferring microbes.

In one study, scientists identified specific bacterial species significantly reduced in animals with mood disorders. They then demonstrated that oral treatment with the same bacteria restored normal levels and eliminated the depressive-like behaviors. Hence, certain bacteria could serve as a treatment for some mental health conditions. This emerging field is known as nutritional psychology or psychobiotics.

In a small study, a group of human volunteers saw reductions in depression and anxiety after taking a combination of probiotics, similar to those found in yogurt, for 30 days. And scientists at UCLA found that healthy women who ate yogurt twice a day showed changes in the parts of the brain that process emotion. In the future, it’s possible that we can feel happier and less anxious just by manipulating our microbiota.

Dementia

An article in Scientific Reports in 2015 stated that some brain regions are found to be infected with fungi in some people with Alzheimer’s Disease. The article suggested that untreated fungal infections slowly spread to the central nervous system. When the fungal burden gets high enough, neuronal loss happens and communication between neurons becomes impaired.

In recent years, the scientific community has further explored the role the gut microbiome plays in the development of Alzheimer’s. Science now confirms the correlation between an imbalance in the gut microbiota and the development of amyloid plaques in the brain, which are the signature of Alzheimer’s disease. In another study, researchers looked at proteins related to Alzheimer’s disease in the cerebral spinal fluid of people with the disease. There was a link between the abundance of certain microbes in the gut and brain changes related to Alzheimer’s.

Recent research found that people living with inflammatory bowel disease have more than twice the risk of developing dementia. A growing body of research suggests changes in the gastrointestinal tract may affect the brain through the gut-brain axis.

Parkinson’s

There is a gut-brain connection in Parkinson’s disease. One of the earliest symptoms of the disease, starting before most people are even diagnosed, is constipation. A person may experience a variety of mental health issues along with physical Parkinson’s symptoms. These can range from depression and anxiety to hallucinations, memory problems, and dementia. Anxiety and depression are two of the most common mental health symptoms that affect people with Parkinson’s.

Studies have found toxic forms of the protein alpha-synuclein in the colon of Parkinson’s patients. A bacteria (Escherichia coli) in the gut makes a specific protein, which can prompt other proteins, including alpha-synuclein, to misfold. This misfolded protein is linked to Parkinson’s’. Some researchers suspect the misfolded proteins transmit the error up the vagus nerve to the brain. However, whether the problem originates in the brain, the gut, or both is not known.

5 Brain and Mental Health Conditions Linked to Your Gut

Autism

Although autism spectrum disorder (ASD) primarily impacts the brain, science has confirmed links with other bodily systems, including the gut. Gastrointestinal (GI) issues occur more often in individuals with ASD than in the rest of the population. Up to 90 percent of people with autism also have gut problems. New research reveals that the same gene mutations — found both in the brain and the gut — could be the cause.

In one study, compared with typically developing children, those with ASD were six to eight times more likely to report GI symptoms. Research shows that children with ASD who experience GI problems have more severe ASD symptoms. Treating the GI symptoms can sometimes relieve the behavioral and social symptoms of ASD. In other recent research, autism symptoms in children were reduced nearly 50 percent for two years following fecal transplants. A fecal transplant is transferring feces from a healthy donor to another person to restore the balance of gut bacteria.

According to researchers, the GI issues that accompany ASD might be caused by inappropriate immune activation, resulting in inflammation of the tract and the types of gut bacteria that are present. However, the link is still unclear, and scientific exploration is ongoing.

How to Support a Healthy Gut 
It is becoming apparent that looking after the health of your gut is vital to your physical and mental health. Prioritizing your gut health may be an integral part of optimizing mental health. Altering your microbiome may become a front-line treatment for mental health issues. Think about it. It’s much easier to manipulate the gut than the brain. According to the Blue Zones article, 6 Ways to Improve Gut Health:
You can’t rely on expensive probiotic supplements to improve your gut health. As it turns out, you can get many of the good bacteria your gut needs to move things through properly by changing things in your environmentFor better digestion and increased metabolism, decreased inflammation and decreased risk of chronic disease, try our 6 easy ways to improve your gut health:
                      • Eat more whole grains, nuts, load up on veggies, beans, and fresh fruits.
                      • The link between your teeth and your gut.
                      • Eat fermented foods that have beneficial bacteria.
                      • Eat more dark chocolate and foods with polyphenols.
                      • Blend in the spices.
                      • Limit artificial sweeteners.
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9 Comments

  1. Fascinating! And so important to know. Thanks for this information, Debbie. I’ve had gut issues for the better part of my adult life and they do seem to be connected with other health issues.

  2. I’ve know for a long time about the gut and other health issues Debbie, but this is a great resource for many other issues I was unaware of. I’m sending it to some friends who have family members who could definitely benefit. Thanks for this. It’s really a useful guide.

  3. Thanks Debbie. I experienced extreme anger for many years. I had already become quite experienced in mindfulness and CBT techniques but I knew that there was more to it because I just woke up angry often and any little thing would provoke an outburst.

    Last year I read a book called Anger and Irritability by William Davies. In it he mentioned diet as a factor and it sparked a memory of the Gut-Brain connection. I got hold of another book on the subject and put it into practice. I was already eating mostly well but cut out ALL sugar and gluten and added in a high strength probiotic.

    Over the next 1-2 months I gradually started feeling less angry and was able to control my temper even in quite stressful situations. Now I’m mostly very relaxed unless I don’t sleep well, get dehydrated or make a mistake with my diet. In the case of sugar I get angry for little reason in about 15 minutes after eating a slice of cake or certain ice creams or other junk food. Obviously my body doesn’t tolerate it well and not everyone will react like this but just wanted to mention it in case others have a similar anger issue.

    • Good for you, Steve. I’m so glad you made the connection and were able to help yourself.I think what is “best” varies for everyone. I’m just glad more people are becoming aware of how important our diets are to our mental health. 🙂

  4. Really, excellent summary of the apparent role of the microbiome in especially neurological health, brain health, and mental health. Loved the clear descriptions of the multiple pathways and the specifics on individual diseases.

    At Aging With Freedom, we’re fascinated by the emerging science of the microbiome and the role that both good and bad microbes play in our health. The connections to diet and environment start to explain why certain diets are either good or bad for health and longevity.

    There’s a lot of science yet to be done to tease out the order of cause and effect. Science will get more reliable or predictable manipulation of the microbiome in our guts. But the promise is huge.

    And there’s enough known today to start guiding dietary choices. Liked your recommendations.

    The emerging literature on the microbiome makes us even more cautious about the overuse of antibiotics because they kill microbes indiscriminately, including the good and necessary ones. Antibiotics, especially broad-spectrum antibiotics, aren’t a cure-all but more a last-ditch defense. COVID highlights the importance of maintaining our autonomic immune system (natural defenses) through our diet and exercise choices.

  5. Great article thank you for this information. I would also mention that pesticides/herbicides are a contributing factor. So eat organic whenever possible!

  6. Alok Upadhyaya Reply

    Very very informative article on gut health and it’s overall impact on our physical and mental health. I am 60 year old, strict vegetarian and do cycling around 16 kms every morning, followed by yoga for 45-50 minutes and in the evening I walk for 45 minutes approximately 5000 steps before dinner. What do you recommend me ? as on date I am perfectly ok, no health issues. I do not take any medication. Keep me posted your new articles.

    • I’m glad you found the article helpful, Alok. Sounds like you are doing a great job of staying physically fit and healthy. I’m impressed. I decline to give specific recommendations being that I am a writer, not a medical professional. 🙂

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