Culturing Happiness With Psychobiotics |
Probiotics were discovered and forgotten over a century ago.
Since then, certain probiotics, called psychobiotics, have been found to improve mood.
Psychobiotics have recently been identified down to the species level and are entering clinical trials.
"If microbes are controlling the brain, then microbes are controlling everything." —John F. Cryan
"If microbes are controlling the brain, then microbes are controlling everything." —John F. Cryan
The connection between microbes and minds has a surprisingly long and twisty history. It all started at the beginning of the 20th century, when zoologist Élie Metchnikoff became fascinated by yogurt. He found that Bulgarian peasants who consumed copious quantities of yogurt lived to a ripe old age despite their harsh living conditions. They also seemed to be happier.
Being a curious zoologist, he investigated and discovered that yogurt was teeming with Lactobacillus bacteria. Convinced that the bacteria were keeping the peasants healthy, he himself adopted the habit of eating yogurt daily. Sadly, as sometimes happens, his theories about probiotics and health were overlooked and not rediscovered until the 1990s.
Unless your gut looks like a yogurt maker, these particular microbial species are unlikely to take up residence there, but they provide a healthy boost in transit. Today, you can pick up a jar of probiotic supplements that Metchnikoff would instantly recognize because most of them are standard yogurt bacteria, largely Lactobacillus and Bifidobacteria.
You might think that closely related bacteria would get along with each other and that you could just replace one with a near cousin. But........