If you’ve ever suffered with depression, you know that treating it can be a trial-and-error experiment to make the right meds “fit” to your particular brain chemistry. Unfortunately, for most people with major depression the meds just don’t work.
A six-year study of 4,000 people found that seventy-five percent of patients still had at least five symptoms.1 They included sadness, insomnia, and even suicidal thoughts.
That bears repeating… The drugs didn’t work for seventy-five percent of the people. We’d call that a major failure!
But there’s a reason why the meds don’t help much…
Antidepressants target your brain. But depression is a full body experience. It usually goes hand-in-hand with stomach or nervous system issues.
That’s because your brain isn’t the only one in charge of your mental health. It’s no wonder standard brain meds don’t “fit.”
The answer lies in treating your “second brain.” And this nutrient is the best way to do that…
Probiotics. Your gut produces the majority of your feel-good chemicals, not your brain.
In fact, your gastrointestinal tract produces more than 95 percent of your serotonin.2 And that’s not all. All of the major brain chemicals are also present in your gut. It has its own independent nervous system that talks to your brain. It’s a two-way street. But your gut has a mind of its own.
It’s why you feel butterflies in your stomach if you feel nervous. It also means you can give your “gut instincts” a little more credit.
Increasing evidence proves the link between your gut and your brain. A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that the friendly bacterium, lactobacillus rhamnosus, directly altered brain chemicals in animals. The probiotic reduced their stress levels and depression-related behavior.
The same study also showed that probiotics lower anxiety levels by raising GABA levels in your brain.3 Lower GABA levels are linked to both anxiety and depression.
Consider this… People who suffer from GI inflammatory disorders like Crohn’s disease and irritable bowel syndrome also have very high rates of depression. That’s no coincidence. One study showed rates as high as 73 percent.4
In this study, the probiotic reduced anxiety in animals that also had low-grade gut inflammation. And it only took ten days of treatment to reduce inflammation and eliminate anxiety.5
Even if you don’t have standard GI symptoms, probiotics are safe and beneficial. They restore the bacteria you need after illnesses or antibiotics wipe them out.
Supplementing is a good idea on this one. Usually the refrigerated supplements have a better chance of containing live strains than brands off the shelf.
If a label gives you an amount listed “at the time of manufacture,” it’s usually a sign the product doesn’t have live strains. Look for brands that guarantee at least one billion live microorganisms. Make sure you keep them refrigerated.
Probiotics are essential to good nutrition. And they boost your immune system. With new studies showing they also boost your mood and relieve anxiety, it’s clear they feed the bridge between your gut and your brain.
Take a high-quality brand for a couple of months and see how much better you feel mentally and physically.
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References:
1 http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110421082524.htm
2 http://www.apa.org/monitor/2012/09/gut-feeling.aspx
3 http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2011/08/26/1102999108
4 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21689304
5 http://www.apa.org/monitor/2012/09/gut-feeling.aspx