Navigation
Fermented foods, the gut and mental health: A mechanistic overview with implications for depression and anxiety
This 2020 narrative review evaluates the theoretical potential of fermented food components in manipulating gut physiology and the biological mechanisms thought to be involved in depression and anxiety. While fermented foods are considered functional because of their possible health benefits, it is the conversion of food substrates by the microbes into functional microorganisms (probiotics) and the production of growth-inducing substrates of beneficial gut bacteria (prebiotics) and of bioactive components (biogenics), that have the ability to modulate the gut microbiota and regulate translocation of endotoxins, thus leading to immune activation and promotion of host nutrition. Preclinical studies have shown the benefits of fermented foods in relieving disrupted gut function and in animal models of depression and anxiety, but human research investigating fermented foods as treatments or preventions for depression and anxiety is limited, while the few studies that do exist are heterogeneous and with significant limitations. It is critical that this gap in knowledge is filled and that the effectiveness of fermented foods in managing human depression and anxiety is examined. [NPID: microbiome, MGBA, gut-brain axis, gut microbiome, fermented food, depression, anxiety, probiotics, prebiotics, endotoxins, endotoxins, depression, anxiety]
Year: 2020
