If you're interested in the Bacteria-autism connection mentioned in the article, here's a great talk by the researcher: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWT_BLVOASI (The topic is "Mind Altering Microbes")
Intestinal bacteria may influence our moods
51–60 of 104 posts
Re: Intestinal bacteria may influence our moods
#52Be very careful with probiotics; just loading your system with random strains of bacteria from your local health food store can have serious consequences. I have IBS and an anxiety disorder that had been in remission for years. I tried Primadophilus Optima and it wrecked me. I went from a mild IBS-C to severe IBS-D, and my panic attacks came back with an intensity unlike anything I've ever experienced. I don't doubt…
I also have IBS and was diagnosed years ago, but I never heard of different classifications that you mentioned, IBS-C or IBS-D. Mostly, I classify the severity as "day-to-day", workdays usually being the worst. I haven't tried consuming live cultures other than yogurt, and even then I have mixed results. Have you gotten far in your research on the types of bacteria, and do you have any resources you could share? Edit…
From the little research I've done, it looks like the bifidobacterium genus, in particular certain strains of bifidobacterium longum [0,1] and infantis [2], have favorable effects on IBS and anxiety. Interestingly, in [1] they noted that it was able to normalize low BDNF levels, which is one hypothesis as to how SSRIs treat anxiety and depression.
However, I picked out my probiotic specifically because it has those species (among many others), and you read what happened.
[0] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17172187
Re: Intestinal bacteria may influence our moods
#53Earlier quoted context omitted.
IBS seems like the doctors way of saying "We don't know what your problem is". Doctors told me I had IBS for 10 years, then a friend suggested to stop eating wheat, and 95% of my symptoms went away. I'm actually about to start testing a FODMAP diet to see if I can improve my health any further. Have you tried anything to improve your health, or did you just accept the IBS diagnosis? I only ask because I've seen no re…
I've tried eliminating wheat, sugar (in case it was fructose malabsorption), dairy, etc. I've tried tons of supplements like fish oil or vitamin D. Interestingly, each of those except dairy had very positive effects on my health in general (weight loss, clearer skin, elimination of seasonal depression) but had little effect on IBS symptoms. What did improve it (but not eliminate it) was taking an SSRI, which isn't su…
First, it's great to hear taking the SSRI helped!
Regarding the diagnosis of IBS, What I'm saying is, I've yet to have had (or seen) a test that definitively states "yes, you have IBS".
During my time with stomach issues I've been tested for UC, Crohns disease, Celiac disease and gluten sensitivity. All the bloodwork and whatever else came back with definitive nos.
Once all of those were ruled out, then the diagnosis became "IBS". Meaning, I didn't take a test that said I had IBS, I was symptomatic and all the actual tests they could run were negative, and hence, I had IBS by default.
What that meant to me was, something is wrong, they just don't know what it is, I should keep searching and trying things to figure out what they don't understand.
I've read so many posts where people get diagnosed with IBS, take the prescribed drugs, and just suffer for the rest of their lives. I just want people to understand they should feel empowered not to settle for the IBS diagnosis and explore options to try and solve the issue for themselves (like you did via SSRI).
Re: Intestinal bacteria may influence our moods
#54Earlier quoted context omitted.
I've tried eliminating wheat, sugar (in case it was fructose malabsorption), dairy, etc. I've tried tons of supplements like fish oil or vitamin D. Interestingly, each of those except dairy had very positive effects on my health in general (weight loss, clearer skin, elimination of seasonal depression) but had little effect on IBS symptoms. What did improve it (but not eliminate it) was taking an SSRI, which isn't su…
First, it's great to hear taking the SSRI helped! Regarding the diagnosis of IBS, What I'm saying is, I've yet to have had (or seen) a test that definitively states "yes, you have IBS". During my time with stomach issues I've been tested for UC, Crohns disease, Celiac disease and gluten sensitivity. All the bloodwork and whatever else came back with definitive nos. Once all of those were ruled out, then the diagnosis…
What do you think about the possibility that the etiology is neurological? Here's my reasoning:
* There's also no simple yes/no test for most mental illnesses
* It explains why it correlates so heavily with anxiety disorders
* It explains why it is treatable with psychotropic drugs
* Falls in line with the increasing evidence that the enteric nervous system plays a role in both IBS and anxiety
Re: Intestinal bacteria may influence our moods
#55Follow @phylogenomics, look at recent his recent rants. Almost certainly this is correlation/causation bunk about the microbiome (in addition to the other problems noted here).
Re: Intestinal bacteria may influence our moods
#56Be very careful with probiotics; just loading your system with random strains of bacteria from your local health food store can have serious consequences. I have IBS and an anxiety disorder that had been in remission for years. I tried Primadophilus Optima and it wrecked me. I went from a mild IBS-C to severe IBS-D, and my panic attacks came back with an intensity unlike anything I've ever experienced. I don't doubt…
> I tried Primadophilus Optima and it wrecked me. How can you be sure that taking probiotics for your IBS is the cause of your IBS getting worse?
I don't for sure. In fact, it is definitely confounded by the fact that I quit my SSRI a month and a half prior. However, the reaction I described began a day after I started the probiotic. Also, it gradually decreased in intensity over the two weeks after I stopped the probiotic and I resumed my SSRI. Just to be sure, I took another and the whole thing happened again.
Re: Intestinal bacteria may influence our moods
#57Earlier quoted context omitted.
IBS seems like the doctors way of saying "We don't know what your problem is". Doctors told me I had IBS for 10 years, then a friend suggested to stop eating wheat, and 95% of my symptoms went away. I'm actually about to start testing a FODMAP diet to see if I can improve my health any further. Have you tried anything to improve your health, or did you just accept the IBS diagnosis? I only ask because I've seen no re…
A "syndrome" is a classification of related signs and symptoms without relating them to a single underlying cause, so yeah, that's what it means. As more is learned about the causes, different disorders can be removed from the syndrome.
True. But note that "can be" does not mean "will be". For example, AIDS is a syndrome (thus the "S") whose causes have been pretty well understood for some time. However, it is still defined as a syndrome.
Re: Intestinal bacteria may influence our moods
#58Earlier quoted context omitted.
I had IBS-D from about the age of 10 to the age of 29. I'm 42 now. What changed for me 13 years ago is that I learned that humans require eating dietary fiber and changed my diet to accomplish that. I eat about 40 grams of dietary fiber and drink at least a gallon of water every day. It actually takes work to reach this goal, but the plus side is that once I started doing this I have had no symptoms of IBS for the pa…
Wow, that's a pretty amazing amount of fiber and a great success story. I would caution applying this advice to everyone, though. As anyone who has a lot of intestinal inflammation can tell you very quickly: fiber is like steel wool dragging through there. Ouch! I think this especially highlights how IBS is a range of causes/symptoms, not one distinct disorder.
IBS does not typically present with inflammation. Those are typically hallmarks of inflammatory bowel disease like colitis or Crohns.
http://www.healthychildren.org/English/health-issues/conditi...
There are some sources that say inflammation does play a role in IBS but every study I've read says it does not.
Re: Intestinal bacteria may influence our moods
#59My anecdotal evidence suggests the probiotics that fix your pooping problems fix your mood too. If they make your poop worse, your mood will suffer as well.
Constipation has sometimes produced the bloodiest scenes. My grandfather, who died a centenarian, was Cromwell's apothecary; he has often told me that Cromwell had not been to the toilet for a week when he had his king's head cut off. - Voltaire
Re: Intestinal bacteria may influence our moods
#60Earlier quoted context omitted.
Wow, that's a pretty amazing amount of fiber and a great success story. I would caution applying this advice to everyone, though. As anyone who has a lot of intestinal inflammation can tell you very quickly: fiber is like steel wool dragging through there. Ouch! I think this especially highlights how IBS is a range of causes/symptoms, not one distinct disorder.
IBS does not typically present with inflammation. Those are typically hallmarks of inflammatory bowel disease like colitis or Crohns. http://www.healthychildren.org/English/health-issues/conditi... There are some sources that say inflammation does play a role in IBS but every study I've read says it does not.
Very interesting. I indeed have Crohn's, not IBS. I thought they would be more closely related, but this article [1] from the CCFA has made me change my mind a little bit...