Sauerkraut Could Be The Secret To Curing Social Anxiety

Can you eat your way to an anxiety-free existence? It might sound outlandish, but the idea that your diet can have a huge effect on your emotions has become the focus of an exciting new area of psychological research. The latest addition to this growing body of research comes from psychologists at the College of William & Mary, and finds a link between a diet high in fermented foods and reductions in neuroticism and social anxiety. “It is likely that the probiotics in the fermented foods are favorably changing the environment in the gut, and changes in the gut in turn influence social anxiety,” Dr. Matthew Hilimire, an assistant professor of psychology and one of the study's authors, said in a statement. “I think that it is absolutely fascinating that the microorganisms in your gut can influence your mind.” Probiotics are live bacteria that support digestion and gut health, and have also been shown to support immune and neurological function. The sauerkraut solution? With preliminary research -- which has mostly been conducted on mice -- suggesting that consuming probiotics might lessen symptoms of anxiety and depression, Hilimire and his colleagues decided to investigate whether eating probiotic-rich foods had a positive effect on personality and social anxiety. For the study, which will be published in the August issue of Psychiatry Research, 700 undergraduates were asked about their consumption of foods such as sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, yogurt, fermente...
Source: Science - The Huffington Post - Category: Science Source Type: news