Probiotics and Subclinical Psychological Symptoms in Healthy Participants: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

These results show that probiotic consumption may have a positive effect on psychological symptoms of depression, anxiety, and perceived stress in healthy human volunteers.

Efficacy of probiotics on anxiety-A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

“…Our findings are also different from that of three previously published meta-analyses (Huang et al, 2017;Huang, Wang, & Hu, 2016;McKean, Naug, Nikbakht, Amiet, & Colson, 2017) assessing the effect of probiotics on depression, anxiety, or psychological symptoms. The inconsistency in findings between our study and the meta-analysis of Huang et al (2017) is particularly interesting because we addressed the same topic but found very different results.…”

Gut microbiota‐immune‐brain interactions in chemotherapy‐associated behavioral comorbidities

“…While implementing probiotic interventions to ameliorate psychiatric disorders is a relatively novel approach, most available clinical trials report reduced symptoms of depression and anxiety. 50, 103 For example, consumption of a mixture of Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus acidophilus, and Bifidobacterium bifidum by patients with MDD reduces symptoms of depression. 51 This same mixture of probiotics also increases cognitive function in patients diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.…”

Gutsy Moves: The Amygdala as a Critical Node in Microbiota to Brain Signaling

“…[90,96] Finally, different probiotic strains have been shown to reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression across several studies in clinical and healthy populations. [97,98] While there have also [5,9,10,88,90] Anxiolytic effects, sometimes sex-specific, in mice (light-dark box, elevated-plus maze) [72,113] Anxiolytic effects in mice (open field, defensive marble burying, elevated-plus maze, light-dark box) [91,93] Strain-specific anxiolytic effects in humans (e.g., Beck Anxiety Index, Hospital Anxiety & Depression Scale) and rodents (defensive marble burying, elevated-plus maze, open field) [11,62,133,134] Transplant from humans with depression or comorbid IBS and anxiety increases anxietylike behavior in mice (open field, step-down test, light-dark box) [96,125] Heightened anxiety in rats (open field) [89] Depression Increased depressive-like behavior in mice (forced swim) [90] Increased depressive-like behavior in rats (forced swim) [94] Antidepressant effects in mice and rats (forced swim, tail suspension, learned helplessness after inescapable shock) [91,92] Strain-specific antidepressant effects in humans (e.g. Beck Depression Inventory, Hospital Anxiety & Depression Scale) and rodents (tail suspension test, forced swim, sucrose preference) [11,97,98,133,134] Transplant from depressed human donors induces depressive-like behavior in mice (sucrose preference, forced swim [varied results], tail suspension test) [90,96] Learned fear Impaired fear recall in adult mice [101] Acute administration enhances fear extinction in rodents and exposure therapy in humans, [103,104] reduces fear recall in huma...…”