Microbes and the Mind


Book Description

Interest in the mind-body connection has grown in recent years, with accumulating evidence showing that the gut microbiome can alter behavioral, neural, and psychological outcomes. This publication brings together a group of international experts who are investigating the microbiome and its potential to contribute to the causes and treatment of mental illness. The contributions are not aimed solely at specialists in clinical and experimental neuroscience. They cover a range of key topics, including the role of the microbiome in mental health and specific psychiatric disorders that occur across the lifespan, interactions with the immune system, diet, and pharmacological interventions. Furthermore, the microbial metabolite production and the potential for psychobiotic interventions that target the microbiome to improve mental health outcomes are discussed. This book is unique in its focus on the mechanisms and consequences of the activities of gut microorganisms in mental health and illness, providing expert insight into the current state of the art and important future directions for this emerging area of research. Additionally, it provides an excellent knowledge base for newcomers and a refresher for researchers and clinicians working in the fields of neuroscience, psychology, or psychiatry.




The Microbiota in Gastrointestinal Pathophysiology


Book Description

The Microbiota in Gastrointestinal Pathophysiology: Implications for Human Health, Prebiotics, Probiotics and Dysbiosis is a one-stop reference on the state-of-the-art research on gut microbial ecology in relation to human disease. This important resource starts with an overview of the normal microbiota of the gastrointestinal tract, including the esophagus, stomach, Ileum, and colon. The book then identifies what a healthy vs. unhealthy microbial community looks like, including methods of identification. Also included is insight into which features and contributions the microbiota make that are essential and useful to host physiology, as is information on how to promote appropriate mutualisms and prevent undesirable dysbioses. Through the power of synthesizing what is known by experienced researchers in the field, current gaps are closed, raising understanding of the role of the microbiome and allowing for further research. - Explains how to modify the gut microbiota and how the current strategies used to do this produce their effects - Explores the gut microbiota as a therapeutic target - Provides the synthesis of existing data from both mainstream and non-mainstream sources through experienced researchers in the field - Serves as a 'one-stop' shop for a topic that's currently spread across a number of various journals




The Mind-Gut Connection


Book Description

Cutting-edge neuroscience combines with the latest discoveries on the human microbiome to inform this practical guide that proves once and for all the inextricable, biological link between mind and body. We have all experienced the connection between our mind and our gut—the decision we made because it “felt right;” the butterflies in our stomach before a big meeting; the anxious stomach rumbling when we’re stressed out. While the dialogue between the gut and the brain has been recognized by ancient healing traditions, including Aryuvedic and Chinese medicine, Western medicine has failed to appreciate the complexity of how the brain, gut, and more recently, the microbiome—the microorganisms that live inside us—communicate with one another. In The Mind-Gut Connection, Dr. Emeran Mayer, Executive Director of the UCLA Center for Neurobiology of Stress, offers a revolutionary look at this developing science, teaching us how to harness the power of the mind-gut connection to take charge of our health. The Mind-Gut Connection, shows how to keep the communication brain-gut communication clear and balanced to: • Heal the gut by focusing on a plant-based diet • Balance the microbiome by consuming fermented foods and probiotics, fasting, and cutting out sugar and processed foods • Promote weight loss by detoxifying and creating a healthy digestion and maximum nutrient absorption • Boost immunity and prevent the onset of neurological diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s • Generate a happier mindset and reduce fatigue, moodiness, anxiety, and depression • Prevent and heal GI disorders such as leaky gut syndrome; food sensitivities and allergies; and IBS; as well as digestive discomfort such as heartburn and bloating • And much more. Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.




Microbial Endocrinology


Book Description

Microbial endocrinology represents a newly emerging interdisciplinary field that is formed by the intersection of the fields of neurobiology and microbiology. This book will introduce a new perspective to the current understanding not only of the factors that mediate the ability of microbes to cause disease, but also to the mechanisms that maintain normal homeostasis. The discovery that microbes can directly respond to neuroendocrine hormones, as evidenced by increased growth and production of virulence-associated factors, provides for a new framework with which to investigate how microorganisms interface not only with vertebrates, but also with invertebrates and even plants. The reader will learn that the neuroendocrine hormones that one most commonly associates with mammals are actually found throughout the plant, insect and microbial communities to an extent that will undoubtedly surprise many, and most importantly, how interactions between microbes and neuroendocrine hormones can influence the pathophysiology of infectious disease.




Paying the Price


Book Description

This report concludes that the prevalence of specific mental disorders is likely to remain broadly stable over the next 20 years. However, costs are projected to increase substantially, largely because of the expected increase in the number of people with dementia. The cost of lost employment is also projected to increase, confirming the major adverse economic impact of poor mental health. The report calls for future costs to be met, a focus on employment, more evidence-based interventions, better systems of early detection and treatment of dementia, and further research into the cost-effectiveness of a range of interventions, including mental health promotion and prevention initiatives.




Super Gut


Book Description

The bestselling author of the Wheat Belly books brings his next big, game-changing idea—how the human microbiome is evolving, and potentially wrecking, our health, and how we can fix it. Because of our highly processed diet, pesticides, and overuse of antibiotics, our guts are now missing so many of the good bacteria that we require to be healthy. As a result, many of us have lost control over our health, weight, mood, and even behavior. The ancient bacteria that keep our digestion moving have been dying, replaced by harmful microbes that don’t keep us physically and mentally fit. With cutting-edge research, Dr. Davis connects the dots between gut health and modern ailments. There are entire species of microbes that have disappeared, which creates health issues that were uncommon one hundred, or even fifty, years ago. The result is SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth), a silent and profound epidemic, which affects one out of three people and is responsible for an astounding range of human health conditions. Super Gut shows us how to eliminate bad bacteria and bring back the “good” bacteria with a four-week plan to reprogram your microbiome. This not only gets to the root of many diseases, but also improves levels of oxytocin (the bonding/happy hormone), brain health, anti-aging, weight loss, mental clarity, and restful sleep. Also included are more than forty recipes, a diet plan, and resources so you can pinpoint your gut issues, correct them, and maintain your long-term health and well-being.




Gut Feelings


Book Description

Why the microbiome--our rich inner ecosystem of microorganisms--may hold the keys to human health. We are at the dawn of a new scientific revolution. Our understanding of how to treat and prevent diseases has been transformed by knowledge of the microbiome--the rich ecosystem of microorganisms that is in and on every human. These microbial hitchhikers may hold the keys to human health. In Gut Feelings, Alessio Fasano and Susie Flaherty show why we must go beyond the older, myopic view of microorganisms as our enemies to a broader understanding of the microbiome as a parallel civilization that we need to understand, respect, and engage with for the benefit of our own health.




The Microbiome Diet


Book Description

First diet book connecting the microbiome with healthy weight loss; featuring an easy wellness program with a 3-phase diet.




10% Human


Book Description

Now in paperback, evolutionary biologist and science writer Alanna Collen’s stunning alarm call concerning the widely-ignored role our gut microbes play in our health and well-being. “Fascinating…. Everything you wanted to know about microbes but were afraid to ask.”— Kirkus Reviews (starred review) You are just 10% human. For every one of the cells that make up the vessel that you call your body, there are nine impostor cells hitching a ride. You are not just flesh and blood, muscle and bone, brain and skin, but also bacteria and fungi. Over your lifetime, you will carry the equivalent weight of five African elephants in microbes. You are not an individual but a colony. Until recently, we had thought our microbes hardly mattered, but science is revealing a different story, one in which microbes run our bodies and becoming a healthy human is impossible without them. In this riveting, shocking, and beautifully written book, biologist Alanna Collen draws on the latest scientific research to show how our personal colony of microbes influences our weight, our immune system, our mental health, and even our choice of partner. She argues that so many of our modern diseases—obesity, autism, mental illness, digestive disorders, allergies, autoimmunity afflictions, and even cancer—have their root in our failure to cherish our most fundamental and enduring relationship: that with our personal colony of microbes. The good news is that unlike our human cells, we can change our microbes for the better. Collen’s book is a revelatory and indispensable guide. Life—and your body—will never seem the same again.




Neurobiology of Depression


Book Description

Depression is one of the most common mental-health disorders, caused by a variety of genetic, biological, environmental, and psychological factors combined. Major depressive disorder (MDD) is typically treated with first-line antidepressant agents that primarily target monoamine neurotransmission; however, only approximately one third of patients with MDD achieve remission following a trial with such an antidepressant. Furthermore, MDD is a heterogeneous phenotype, and new frameworks such as the NIMH Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) may provide a more accurate, biologically based comprehension of the symptomatic heterogeneity of this devastating illness, and certain symptomatic clusters may be promising targets for novel therapeutics, such as drug and psychological treatments for the management of the cognitive impairments that can encompass several domains and contribute to psychosocial function, and that can persist for many patients even in periods of symptomatic remission. Neurobiology of Depression synthesizes the basic neurobiology of major depressive disorder with discussion of the most recent advances in research, including the interacting pathways implicated in the pathophysiology of MDD, omics technologies, genetic approaches, and the development of novel optogenetic approaches that are changing researchers' perspectives and may revolutionize research into depression. The basic foundational understanding of the neurobiology underlying the disorder, as well as the comprehensive summary of the most recent advances in research, combine to aid advanced students and researchers in their understanding of MDD and change the landscape of the management of depression with the development of novel and fast-acting pharmaceutical and neuromodulatory approaches. Aids readers in understanding major depressive disorder in the context of NIMH Research Domain Criteria (RDoC) recommendations Covers range of existing and potential pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic treatment options, from lifestyle adjustments to antidepressants to novel therapeutics Synthesizes discussion of cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying symptoms with clinical aspects of depression for a thorough understanding of the disorder