Think Brain? Think Probiotics!
FEATURE
NUTRITION
The scientific evidence is out there for supporting the brain with probiotics
Lynn Toohey
PhD
WE’VE ALL KNOWN FOR SOME TIME THAT probiotic supplementation can help communication along the microbiome-gut-brain (MGB) axis, but more research is coming out demonstrating that probiotics are amazing support for all aspects of brain activity.
Probiotic supplementation has been used to support a wide range of patients’ concerning cognitive factors. Recent research “provides direct support to the growing evidence that probiotics can attenuate oxidative stress in the brain and at the systemic level via the gut-brain axis.”1
Suspected pathways for the support efficacy of probiotics and the brain include an epigenetic effect on the SIRT 1 enzyme, whereby probiotics help activate the SIRT (silencing information regulator 2 related enzyme) pathway. This conveys a lot of antioxidant power and neuronal health benefits that impact the brain.1
SLEEP — Important for a Fully Functioning Brain:
Probiotics can help counteract the negative effects of sleep loss, and sleep loss is a major aging and inflammation factor that interferes with brain function. It is estimated that individuals need at least seven to eight hours of sleep a night to remove toxic waste in the brain through the glymphatic system, such as beta-amyloid and tau proteins that interfere with memory.
It has been demonstrated that probiotic supplementation represents “a viable strategy to counteract oxidative stress and inflammation related to sleep loss” and that probiotics can limit “negative consequences on health and well-being.”1-23 Another interesting study found listening to music during a warm-up exercise could attenuate the negative effects that partial sleep deprivation had on cognition and performance.4
The scientific evidence for probiotic support for all stages of cognitive function abounds in the literature, from clinical trials to reviews and meta-analyses.5-6-7-8 While some research focuses on particular species and strains, the consensus is that a good variety of species from Lactobacillus and Bifidobacteria is helpful, and the addition of prebiotics can increase efficacy.
Dietary sources for prebiotics include Jerusalem artichokes, beets, rose hips, and mushrooms. Prebiotics are nondigestible fiber compounds that are degraded by gut microbiota and are often lacking in the standard American diet.
Mushrooms are an excellent source of prebiotics because they contain a variety of polysaccharides, such as chitin, galactans, xylans, hemicellulose, glucans, and mannans. Mushrooms act as prebiotics to stimulate the growth of gut microbiota, conferring health benefits to the host.”9
In a six-year study of over 600 seniors, a team from the department of psychological medicine and department of biochemistry at the National University of Singapore’s Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine found that seniors who consume more than two standard portions of mushrooms weekly may be able to increase their odds of maintaining homeostatic cognitive awareness by 50%.10
The moral of the story is to be conscious of the brain-gut connection throughout life. Remember that through all the stages the brain endures, probiotics and prebiotics are important to maintain brain function to avoid nonhomeostatic decline of neurons and brain activity.
Dr. Lynn Toohey organizes seminars, acts as a nutritional consultant to NutriWest (www.nutriwest, com), and authored the Functional Health Evaluation program that analyzes blood tests and DNA raw data (www. FHEcloud.com). Dr. Toohey can be reached at 866-271-8888 or by email at drtc hey@ nutri-west.net with any questions.
References
1. Zheng Y et al, Zhang L, Bonfili L, de Vivo L, Eleuteri AM, Bellesi M. Probiotics supplementation attenuates inflammation and oxidative stress induced by chronic sleep restriction. Nutrients. 2023 Mar 21;15(6):1518. doi: 10.3390/nul5061518. PMID: 36986248; PMCID: PMC 10054086.
2. Zheng Y, Zhang Z, Tang P, Wu Y, Zhang A, Li D, Wang CZ, Wan JY, Yao H, Yuan CS. Probiotics fortify intestinal barrier function: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials. Front Immunol. 2023 Apr 24:14:1143548. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1143548. PMID: 37168869; PMCID: PMC10165082.
3. FeiY, Wang R, Lu J, PengS, YangS, Wang Y, Zheng K, Li R, Lin L, Li M. Probiotic intervention benefits multiple neural behaviors in older adults with mild cognitive impairment. GeriatrNurs. 2023 May-Jun;51:167-175. doi: 10.1016/j.gerinurse.2023.03.006. Epub 2023 Mar 28. PMID: 36990042.
4. Khemila S, Abedelmalek S, Romdhani M, Souissi A, Chtourou H, Souissi N. Listening to motivational music during warming-up attenuates the negative effects of partial sleep deprivation on cognitive and short-term maximal performance: Effect of time of day. Chronobiol Int. 2021 Jul;38(7): 1052-1063. doi: 10.1080/07420528.2021.1904971. Epub 2021 Apr 19. PMID: 33874838.
5. Naomi R, Embong H, Othman F, Ghazi HF, Maruthey N, Bahari H. Probiotics for Alzheimer's disease: a systematic review. Nutrients. 2021 Dec 22;14(l):20. doi: 10.3390/ nul4010020. PMID: 35010895; PMCID: PMC8746506.
6. Kim CS, Cha L, Sim M, Jung S, Chun WY, Baik HW, Shin DM. Probiotic supplementation improves cognitive function and mood with changes in gut microbiota in community-dwelling older adults: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter trial. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2021 Jan l;76(l):32-40. doi: 10.1093/gerona/glaa090. PMID: 32300799; PMCID: PMC7861012.
7. Den H, Dong X, Chen M, Zou Z. Efficacy of probiotics on cognition, and biomarkers of inflammation and oxidative stress in adults with Alzheimer's disease or mild cognitive impairment - a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Aging (Albany NY). 2020 Feb 15;12(4):4010-4039. doi: 10.18632/aging. 102810. Epub 2020 Feb 15. PMID: 32062613; PMCID: PMC7066922.
8. Tamtaji OR, Heidari-Soureshjani R, Mirhosseini N, Kouchaki E, Bahmani F, Aghadavod E, Taj abadi-Ebrahimi M, Asemi Z. Probiotic and selenium co-supplementation, and the effects on clinical, metabolic and genetic status in Alzheimer's disease: a randomized, double-blind, controlled trial. Clin Nutr. 2019 Dec;38(6):2569-2575. doi: 10.1016/j. clnu.2018.11.034. Epub 2018 Dec 10. PMID: 30642737.
9. Jayachandran M, Xiao J, Xu B. A critical review on health promoting benefits of edible mushrooms through gut microbiota. Int J Mol Sci. 2017 Sep 8;18(9):1934. doi: 10.3390/ijmsl8091934. PMID: 28885559; PMCID: PMC5618583.
10. Feng L, Cheah IK, Ng MM, Li J, Chan SM, Lim SL, Mahendran R, Kua EH, Halliwell B. The association between mushroom consumption and mild cognitive impairment: a community-based cross-sectional study in Singapore. J Alzheimers Dis. 2019;68(l): 197-203. doi: 10.3233/JAD-180959. PMID: 30775990. _
