Tag: Psychiatry

  • Psychobiotics: A Revolution in Psychiatry

    Psychobiotics: A Revolution in Psychiatry

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    by

    Scott Anderson
    in

    Psychobiotics are microbes that lift your mood. Psychiatry needs them now. What are psychobiotics? Despite their somewhat sinister-sounding name, psychobiotics are probiotics and prebiotics that can lift your mood and decrease anxiety. The word was coined by Psychiatrist and researcher Dr. Ted Dinan and colleague John Cryan, Chair of Anatomy and Neuroscience at University College Cork, in Ireland. These prolific…

  • Transferring the Blues

    Transferring the Blues

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    by

    Scott Anderson
    in ,

    Can depression be transferred via microbes?  The gut-brain axis–the fascinating connection between gut microbes and the brain–sounds like science fiction. How can such tiny creatures affect our mood and behavior? How much of this story is hype and how much is real, useful science? In 2003, Nobuyuki Sudo and colleagues noticed that germ-free mice behaved…