Healthy gut, healthy mind: The schizophrenia and digestion connection

If you’ve ever had a gut feeling that you are what you eat, new research suggests that you may be much closer to the mark than you think.

The role of the gut – dubbed our body’s most under-rated organ – briefly hit the popular consciousness with the international best-selling book, Gut, by micro-biologist Guilia Enders.

What is becoming clear in this rapidly evolving field of academic research is that our largest sensory organ – about eight metres long if laid end to end – has an intimate connection with our brain, and thus both with our mental health, our emotions and disorders such as schizophrenia.

Often called ‘the second brain’, the trillions of microbes that we carry in the gut produce the vast bulk of the same neuro-transmitters that are used for regulation of the brain. If the vagus nerve, which connects the brain and the digestive system, is cut, the digestive system functions fine on its own.

Enders writes that 10 years ago there was hardly any research linking the gut with the brain, where now there are several hundred academic articles. 
 

World-first study

Adding to that field of research is a project about to start at the Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute at the University of Wollongong, headed by Dr Katrina Green and Professor Xu-Feng Huang, as well psychiatric Professor Nagesh Pai and psychologist Dr Jason Cusack.

The pilot project will study about 30 patients with schizophrenia to investigate the link between bacteria in our gut and brain functioning to identify new ways to improve cognitive function.

Source: University of Wollongong (from left)  1. Dr Katrina Green    2. Professor Xu-Feng Huang

 

“I find it fascinating that we get these gut feelings,” Dr Green says.

“When a person has a psychotic episode it’s in your face, so that’s what gets treated. The cognitive deficit that comes along with schizophrenia is in the background. 
 

Memory and learning loss

“Research is showing that cognitive deficit – problems with memory and learning – occurs in a lot of people before the first signs of the illness appear.

“I often hear that people’s sons or daughters are performing well at school, and then they go into a decline. By the time they are 19 or 20, they end up with psychosis.”

The project will not only look at ways of improving the brain functioning of those with schizophrenia, but also has the potential of providing early diagnosis for the disease.

The hypothesis of the study is that gut microbes are a key factor in the psychological changes in the brain.

The method will be to examine the gut microbes in the stool samples of patients, both when they are exhibiting symptoms of psychosis, and when they are not.

“Cognition is often not tested by clinicians and is not addressed by current anti-psychotic medications,” Dr Green says. 

Neuro-transmitters in the gut

These gut bacteria produce the same neuro-transmitters that regulate emotion and mental health in the brain – dopamine, serotonin, glutamate, norephinephrine.

“If we can find out what’s dysfunctional, then we can figure out how to fix it. The aim is to try and improve the functioning of people with schizophrenia and restore normality to their lives.”

Clinical psychologist Dr Jason Cusack is the researcher in charge with testing the cognition of the patients in the study.

As part of the Illawarra Brain Injury Service, he is experienced at administering tests to measure impairment of brain function, whether that’s from trauma or psychosis.

“The very interesting thing with schizophrenia and cognition is that it’s becoming more recognised as a core effect,” he says.

“Traditionally, the disease has been seen in terms of psychosis and hallucination, as well as the social factor of withdrawal. We have these negative symptoms of apathy, as well as the positive symptoms of psychosis.” 

Source: University of Wollongong (from left)  3. Dr Jason Cusack 4. Professor Nagesh Pai

Cognition is key

More recently, research and the most recent Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, published by the American Psychiatric Association, incorporates cognition as one of the key factors in schizophrenia.

Symptoms can include changes in memory and learning, perception and speech, distraction, inability to focus, depression, anxiety and a reduction in self-care.

For Professor Nagesh Pai, the research into the gut and its connection with mental health started in 2009; when he began researching why anti-psychotic drugs often caused weight-gain in patients.

Currently research is investigating a medication derived from lizard salvia; this medication is used   to counter the symptoms of diabetes. This medication has shown promise in mice with both weight loss and improvements in cognition; planning is under way for human trials. 
 

Huge effect on mental health

“We also know that patients with schizophrenia have two to three times the risk of developing diabetes, compared to the general population,” Dr Pai says.

“We are trying to find out the part that genetic factors play in this, as well as social or environmental factors. The aetiology of schizophrenia is multifactorial and while the role of genetic factors are well established further work is needed investigating the role of environmental and social factors in controlling diabetes in this population.

The UOW research team believe that altered gut microbes effect the neuronal functioning of the brain.

There is a lot of evidence that there is a bi-directional communication between the brain and the gut and that both influence the functioning of each other.

“If we are able to establish this, a new direction may be provided for the management of schizophrenia.”

 
Story By: William Verity 

Source: https://www.timeshighereducation.com/hub/university-wollongong (29/02/2024)

 

Writing by hand may increase brain connectivity more than typing, readings of student brains suggest

Writing by hand may increase brain connectivity more than typing, readings of student brains suggest

After recording the brain activity of university students, researchers in Norway determined that writing by hand may improve learning and memory.

A participant in the Norway study. Courtesy NTNU

Jan. 27, 2024, 4:00 PM IST

By Aria Bendix

Typing may be faster than writing by hand, but it’s less stimulating for the brain, according to research published Friday in the journal Frontiers in Psychology.

After recording the brain activity of 36 university students, researchers at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology determined that handwriting might improve learning and memory.

At the start of the experiment, the students were told to either write words in cursive using a digital pen on a touchscreen, or to type the same words using a keyboard. When a word such as “forest” or “hedgehog” appeared on a screen in front of them, they had 25 seconds to write or type it over and over.

Meanwhile, a cap of sensors on their head measured their brain waves. The cap’s 256 electrodes attached to the scalp and recorded the electrical signals of the students’ brains, including where brain cells were active and how parts of the brain communicated with each other.

“Our main finding was that handwriting activates almost the whole brain as compared to typewriting, which hardly activates the brain as such. The brain is not challenged very much when it’s pressing keys on a keyboard as opposed to when it’s forming those letters by hand,” said Audrey van der Meer, the study’s co-author and a neuropsychology professor at NTNU.

In particular, the study found that writing by hand required communication between the brain’s visual, sensory and motor cortices. People who wrote with the digital pen had to visualize letters, then use their fine motor skills to control their movement when writing.

“When you have to form letters by hand, an ‘A’ will look completely different than a ‘B’ and requires a completely different movement pattern,” van der Meer said.

By contrast, when typing, the keys look mostly the same, regardless of the letter. As a result, the study found, typing required less brain activity in the visual and motor cortices.

“Because only small parts of the brain are active during typewriting, there is no need for the brain to communicate between different areas,” van der Meer said.

Van der Meer’s previous research in children and young adults similarly found that people’s brains are more active while writing by hand than while typing. A 2017 study from Indiana University also indicated that writing by hand could link visual and motor skills, which might help kids better recognize letters.

But so far, there’s mixed evidence as to whether taking notes on paper versus a laptop can help people remember and understand information better in the classroom or raise their performance on tests.

It’s also hard to know whether or how the brain activity in the new study might translate into real-life improvements in learning or memory, said Ramesh Balasubramaniam, a neuroscientist at the University of California, Merced, who wasn’t involved in the research.

Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/writing-by-hand-may-increase-brain-connectivity-rcna135880 (DoA: 31/01/2024)

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2022

 HAPPY NEW YEAR 2022

Happy and Prosperous New year 2020

Wish you all A Happy and Prosperous New Year 2020

Research shows how reading for pleasure can improve your life

by University of Liverpool

Research by the University of Liverpool's Centre for Research into Reading, Literature and Society (CRILS) has found that people who read are more likely to be satisfied with their lives.

The study, headed by Dr Josie Billington, explored the emotional, social and psychological benefits to adults of regular reading for pleasure.
Commissioned by Galaxy chocolate on behalf of Quick Reads, a programme that produces short books by well-known authors for busy people and less confident readers, the study reveals that regular reading has the unique ability to empower us to embark on positive journeys in life, connect us with others and make us feel happier in our own skin. This year, the campaigner for education Malala leads the line-up of authors, shining a light on how reading can empower us all.
Confidence
The research shows that books can provide the fundamental confidence we need to pursue our goals and make big life decisions:

• 27% of the population have been inspired to make a positive change in their life from reading such as look for a new job or end a bad relationship)
• 36% of the population have been inspired to go travelling by a book

The study also revealed that reading has inspired us to make other positive changes in our lives:

• A fifth of the nation has been motivated to take better care of their health by reading a book
• 19% of adults say books have given them the impetus they need to take up a new hobby

Ultimate stress remedy
A third (35%) of the population admits that they would like to read more but are often distracted by using their phone or watching TV. However, highlighting the profound and significant effect that a good book can have on our overall contentment and fulfilment, the research revealed that over a third (38%) of the nation chooses reading as their ultimate stress remedy. What is more, reading is proven to be a greater comfort to us than some more obvious go-to solutions:

• 35% of participants revealed that books are most likely to bring them comfort when they are feeling down, versus 31% who choose a glass of wine and 10% who choose a hot bath
• 41% of adults even find reading to be a better cure for their everyday worries than a night out with friends

The nation may also find it heartening to learn that the research found the lovably flawed Bridget Jones to be the literary character most women could identify with – with 1 in 10 respondents also agreeing that reading comforts them by showing it is okay to be flawed. In fact, the research showed that we prefer to read about someone who makes mistakes (23%) and is funny (20%) more than we value a character who is brave (19%), loyal (17%), or kind (11%).

Dr Josie Billington, Deputy Director, Centre for Research into Reading at the University of Liverpool, said: "35% of respondents in our research reported that they would like to spend more time reading, but cite using their phones or watching television as frequent distractions: no wonder there is concern that reading is at risk of becoming a forgotten pleasure.
"The positive effects that reading can have on society are widely documented and what has been made abundantly clear by this research is that books can help us to enjoy the little things in life, and be happier in ourselves; a useful and timely reminder for all of us to draw on the many benefits that only reading can deliver."
Top 5 most inspiring literary characters from bestselling novels
Women are inspired by…

1. Atticus Finch (To Kill a Mockingbird)
2. Katniss Everdeen (The Hunger Games series)
3. Harry Potter (Harry Potter series)
4. Bridget Jones (Bridget Jones' Diary series)
5. Anna Fitzgerald (My Sister's Keeper)

Men are inspired by…

1. Atticus Finch (To Kill a Mockingbird)
2. Frodo Baggins (Lord of the Rings series)
3. Harry Potter (Harry Potter series)
4. Robert Langdon (Da Vinci Code / Angels and Demons)
5. Amir (The Kite Runner) / Pi Patel (Life of Pi)

In this, the tenth anniversary year of Quick Reads, founder Baroness Gail Rebuck, DBE comments: "I consider reading to not only be one of life's greatest pleasures but also a source of empowerment and enrichment. Books can change people's lives. I hope that the benefits highlighted in this report will encourage the one in three adults who never pick up a book to consider how their lives – and their children's – could be enhanced with the simple act of reading."

Source: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2016-02-pleasure-life.html (14/06/2019)

Women less sensitive to pain than men

Women less sensitive to pain than men

For the study, published in the Current Biology journal, the team conducted experiments on both humans and mice where they were taken to specific rooms and made to experience low levels of pain caused by heat delivered to their hind paw or forearm. health Updated: Jan 14, 2019 11:12 IST

Indo Asian News Service

When experiencing pain again, men seemed to be stressed and hypersensitive in remembering, but women were not stressed by their earlier experiences of pain. (Unsplash)

Women tend to forget pain that they suffered more quickly than men, confirmed a new study in mice and humans, challenging the widely held belief that the fairer sex are more sensitive to pain than men. The study, by researchers from Canada’s University of Toronto Mississauga (UTM), showed that men and women remembered earlier painful experiences differently.

When experiencing pain again, men seemed to be stressed and hypersensitive in remembering, but women were not stressed by their earlier experiences of pain.
“If remembered pain is a driving force for chronic pain and we understand how pain is remembered, we may be able to help some sufferers by treating the mechanisms behind the memories directly,” said lead author Loren Martin, Assistant Professor at the UTM.

“What was even more surprising was that men reacted more, because it is well known that women are both more sensitive to pain than men, and that they are also generally more stressed out,” Martin added.

For the study, published in the Current Biology journal, the team conducted experiments on both humans and mice where they were taken to specific rooms and made to experience low levels of pain caused by heat delivered to their hind paw or forearm.

Further, human participants were asked to wear a tightly inflated blood pressure cuff and exercise their arms for 20 minutes, while each mouse received a diluted injection of vinegar designed to cause a stomach ache for about 30 minutes. When the next day the participants returned to either the same or a different room and heat was again applied to their arms or hind paws, men rated the heat pain higher than they did the day before, and higher than the women did.
Similarly, male mice returning to the same environment exhibited a heightened heat pain response, while mice placed in a new and neutral environment did not.

First Published: Jan 14, 2019 11:11 IST

Source: https://www.hindustantimes.com/health/women-less-sensitive-to-pain-than-men/story-BUiLKZderKkA8IA6PcrcQO.html (16.01.2019)

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2019 !!

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2019 !!

New research finds taking a vacation could help you live longer

Zameena Mejia | @ZamTheWriter

8:00 AM ET Thu, 30 Aug 2018

Vladimir Vladimirov | Getty Images

Thinking about skipping those vacation days? Don't. One of the longest follow-up studies in the world finds vacations can actually prolong your life.
And if you think your spin classes and kombucha habit will make up for postponing that dream cruise and save you from your jam-packed, hard driving life, think again. An improved, healthier lifestyle will not compensate for working too hard and not taking your holidays, University of Helsinki professor Timo Strandberg said Tuesday at the annual European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress. "Vacations can be a good way to relieve stress."
The new findings are a follow-up to the Helsinki Businessmen Study, research that for decades has followed 1,222 male executives born between 1919 and 1934. Each had at least one risk factor for heart disease (for example, the men smoked, were overweight, or had high blood pressure or high cholesterol).
The research, which began in the 1960s, evolved into a longitudinal study in the 1970s to better understand cardiovascular diseases. The work was extended through 2014 as a longitudinal study, focusing in part on how mid-life risk factors can impact quality of life and well-being in old age.

For the study, the men were randomly split into two groups. In one, a control, men lived their lives as they always did and did not meet with the study's investigators. Men in the other group, an intervention group, were given advice on how to improve their health. These men were asked to exercise, improve their diets, reach a healthy weight or stop smoking.

Strandberg found that the men who improved their lifestyles had a higher mortality rate if they shortchanged their vacations. At the study's 15-year check-in, those in the intervention group had higher mortality rates than those in the control group. The culprit? Working too hard, not sleeping enough and not taking enough vacation.
In fact, those in the intervention group, the ones with improved and healthier lifestyles, had a 37 percent higher chance of dying between 1974 and 2004 if they'd taken vacations lasting less than three weeks when compared to those who took vacations lasting three weeks or more.
After 2004, mortality rates for men in both groups were the same. (By then, the men had reached their 80s and 90s.)
While dramatic, this new research won't likely impact most Americans' vacation habits. Most American workers don't get that many paid days to begin with. Younger workers might not have the work experience to hit the magic three weeks of vacation noted in the study. In fact, the Bureau of Labor Statistics says the average worker has logged 20 years of experience before earning 20 paid days or more in some positions.
Even if they do have the time, many workers feel they can't take it. Americans have put off vacation because they feel they have too much work to do and too many family obligations. Many feel a vacation is simply a luxury they can't afford.
Given that experts find that vacation can help you be more productive when you return to work, maybe it's time to put in that request for a few days off.

Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/30/new-study-finds-taking-your-vacation-could-help-you-live-longer.html