Researchers may have uncovered another reason to eat gut-friendly meals.
Is there a Fountain of Youth in your gut?
The previous study had suggested a link between gastrointestinal microbiota—the trillions of microorganisms that live in the digestive tract—and brain health, so researchers from Ireland's University College Cork wanted to see if this link could influence the aging brain.
Professors transplanted fecal microbiota (the "good" gut bacteria) into old mice from either young (3 to 4 months old) or old (19 to 20 months old) mice. The authors discovered that mice given the "adolescent" microbiome showed reduced signs of anxiety, a hallmark indicator of Alzheimer's disease, and enhanced memory and cognitive performance after brain scans and tests (such as the traditional rodent maze).
The scans revealed that their brains had chemicals and gene sequences similar to those found in a juvenile mouse's brain. The findings were recently published in the journal Nature Aging.
In a press release, John F. Cryan, professor and vice president for research and innovation at the University College Cork, said, "This new research is a potential game-changer, as we have proven that the microbiome may be used to reverse age-related brain damage."
"The study offers up potential in the future to control gut microbiota as a therapeutic target to influence brain health," a colleague and director of the research center said while adding that this discovery is still in its "early days."
According to the Alzheimer's Association, more than six million Americans are affected by this progressive brain illness that causes a steady deterioration in memory, thinking, and reasoning abilities. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the number of persons living with Alzheimer's disease, the most common type of dementia, doubles every five years after age 65.
"It [this new study from Ireland] adds to the growing body of evidence that there are significant interactions between the gut microbiome and the brain, which are most likely mediated by our immune system," says Douglas Scharre, MD, a neurologist, and director of the division of Cognitive Neurology at Ohio State Wexner Medical Center. "I agree that a great deal more research is required."
According to Sunitha Posina, MD, this latest research, a board-certified internist from New York City, seems promising. "If this could be recreated in humans, it would be groundbreaking," she continues. "This is fantastic news."
She agrees with Scharre and the scientists that "bigger research and more longitudinal studies" are needed to establish a direct association. "Regardless, I don't see any harm in increasing our gut flora through nutrition and lifestyle because they are good for our whole health, not just our brain," Posina says.
Probiotics or live bacterial cultures are beneficial to the gastrointestinal tract and can be found in various meals. According to the National Institutes of Health, two types of living microbes, Lactobacillus or Streptococcus, are added to pasteurized milk to form yogurt, making it one of the most popular probiotic-rich fermented meals. Pickles, sauerkraut, miso, kombucha, kefir, kimchi, sourdough bread, and apple cider vinegar are all gut flora-friendly and fermented foods family.
Additionally, you can feed your gut flora by including more prebiotic-rich foods on your plates, such as tomatoes, artichokes, bananas, asparagus, berries, garlic, onions, chicory, green vegetables, legumes, oats, linseed, barley, and wheat, which have been shown to enhance the "probiotic effect" in the small intestine and colon, according to a study published in the journal Nutrients.