Beyond gut health - prebiotics promise mental wellness

New collaborative research shows a prebiotic supplement can reduce inflammation. This could help with symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression in people with metabolic syndrome - a combination of several health concerns including obesity, cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes.

In the study, participants consumed 10g of a prebiotic fibre blend each day, and received healthy eating advice, for 12 weeks. A control group received healthy eating advice only, for the same period.

The study was published in the British Journal of Nutrition.

The study, which is a collaboration between the University of Reading, Myota, KU Leuven, and the University of Geneva, confirms a link between the gut microbiome and mental wellbeing.

After taking 10g of prebiotic fibre blend for 12 weeks, researchers saw a reduction in C-reactive protein (CRP) in the volunteers. This is a sign of reduced inflammation. At the same time, improvements in mental wellbeing were also observed. But in the control group, despite receiving healthy eating advice, there were no improvements.

The prebiotic supplement is made up of fructooligosaccharides, inulin, resistant dextrin, resistant maltodextrin, partially hydrolysed guar gum, and guar gum. The supplement was provided for the study by Myota, a company which sells prebiotic supplements, which also funded the research.

Dr Piril Hepsomali, a researcher in psychology at the University of Reading, said: “People with metabolic syndrome tend to have high levels of inflammation and this could affect their mental wellbeing.

“We know that some gut bacteria produce short chain fatty acids that can regulate inflammation. The prebiotic blend increased beneficial gut bacteria, in particular Bifidobacterium and Parabacteroides, which are known to break down fibre and produce short chain fatty acids.

“We think the increase in these species, and the subsequent reduction in markers of inflammation, are playing a role in improving the mood of our participants.”

Although a relatively small study size (40 in the treatment group, 20 in the control group), this points to a great potential to intervene with dietary supplements to improve wellbeing.

Dr Caitlin Hall, Head of Research for Myota, said: “Having seen these positive results, we are now exploring more creative food formats to make prebiotics more accessible as part of a daily diet.” F

unded by Innovate UK and BBSRC, Dr Hepsomali and Myota, as well as Puratos and Thriva, will now assess whether a bakery product enriched with Myota’s prebiotic fibre blend would lead to improvements in cognitive function and mood through reductions in inflammation in older adults.

Full reference: Hall CV, Hepsomali P, Dalile B, Scapozza L, Gurry T. Effects of a diverse prebiotic fibre blend on inflammation, the gut microbiota and affective symptoms in metabolic syndrome: a pilot open-label randomised controlled trial. British Journal of Nutrition. Published online 2024:1-12. doi:10.1017/S0007114524002186

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