Study: Probiotics Curb Anxiety

TORONTO—New research from Canada found taking a daily supplement of probiotics reduced anxiety symptoms for chronic fatigue sufferers. In the pilot study (Gut Pathog. 2009;1(1):6), 39 chronic fatigue patients were randomized to receive either the probiotic Lactobacillus casei Shirota or a placebo daily for two months. Results showed a significant decrease in anxiety symptoms among those taking the probiotic versus the placebo (P=0.01). They found 73 percent of subjects taking the probiotic experienced increased levels of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacteria in the gut, which corresponded with a significant decrease in anxiety symptoms. In the placebo group, only 37.5 percent showed an increase in Bifidobacteria, while only 43.8 per cent showed an increase in Lactobacillus bacteria. The researchers found no statistically significant change in anxiety symptoms among this group. Researchers noted, “These results lend further support to the presence of a gut-brain interface, one that may be mediated by microbes that reside or pass through the intestinal tract.”

Many chronic fatigue syndrome patients suffer from anxiety and reduce intestinal microbial flora in the gut as well as fatigue, depression and insomnia.