Consumption of fermented dairy products is associated with lower anxiety levels in Azorean university students

Abstract

A growing number of studies have found that the gut microbiota is involved in a variety of psychological processes and neuropsychiatric disorders, which include mood and anxiety disorders. Consumption of dairy products may contain bioactive compounds and probiotic bacteria with various therapeutic benefits. The aim of the study was to investigate possible associations between the frequency of consumption of different types of dairy products and the state of anxiety in university students. The subjects were 311 Azorean university students, 231 women and 80 men, with an average age of 20.5 years. Subjects completed a quantitative questionnaire on the frequency of dairy product consumption and a short version of the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) test. Among dairy products, semi-skimmed milk was the most commonly consumed, followed by cheese (ripened), drinking yogurt, skim milk, and set yogurt, while fresh cheese, whole milk, and dairy ice cream were the least common. Discriminant analysis showed that consumption of fermented products (yogurt and cheese) was significantly higher (P < 0.05) in the group with low anxiety level (score <40 in STAI test) than in the group with higher anxiety level (score ≥ 40). In this analysis, 62.4% of the initially grouped cases were correctly classified according to the frequency of fermented products consumption. No correlations were found between anxiety and unfermented dairy products. The results indicate that the consumption of fermented dairy products has a positive effect on reducing anxiety in young Azorean university students.

The effect of prebiotic and probiotic food consumption on anxiety severity: a nationwide study in Korea

“…There are only a few studies investigating the relationship between consumption of fermented foods and anxiety. Sousa et al ( 43 ) demonstrated that the consumption of fermented dairy products such as yogurt and cheese has a positive effect on reducing anxiety in Portuguese students. A prospective cohort study indicated that a positive association was found between the consumption of fermented food such as yogurt, kefir, and soured milk and severity of anxiety symptoms in Polish adults ( 44 ).…”

Association between Dairy Consumption and Psychological Symptoms: Evidence from a Cross-Sectional Study of College Students in the Yangtze River Delta Region of China

“…The results showed that 20.4% of Chinese adults consume dairy products at least once a week, and 68.5% of respondents reported they never or rarely consume dairy products [ 28 ]. Among college students in Azorean, 91.8% of female students and 98.8% of male students were reported to consume at least one serving of dairy products between two and four times per week [ 26 ]. The reason for this difference may be related to differences in the geographical dietary habits of the study population.…”

“…The above findings are from studies of adults, and there is limited research on college student populations. A study from the Azores showed that the consumption of fermented dairy products had a positive effect on reducing anxiety in young college students [ 26 ]. In addition, probiotics have been reported to improve panic anxiety, neurophysiological anxiety, negative emotions, and worry, and to increase the regulation of negative emotions in college students [ 27 ].…”

Microorganisms and Their Importance in the Food Industry: Safety, Quality and Health Properties

“…In addition, traditional fermented foods can be a source of novel microorganisms with interesting properties that can be utilised by the food industry [4][5][6]. In recent decades, there has also been increasing scientific evidence that fermented foods and the microorganisms associated with them can positively affect human health [7][8][9][10][11][12]. Certain microorganisms benefit the host by correcting imbalances in the gut microbiota [13,14], stimulating immunity [15] and producing a variety of bioactive compounds including vitamins [16], enzymes [17], bacteriocins [18], bioactive peptides [19], conjugates of linoleic acid (CLAs) [20], short-chain fatty acids [21], gammaaminobutyric acid (GABA) [22] and exopolysaccharides (EPSs) [23].…”