Probiotics May Be the Answer to Lessening Symptoms of DepressionFood can impact your life in a positive or negative way. Some foods are better for you than others. But what you eat can do more than just keep your body healthy – it can also help improve a mental disorder such as depression. Your thoughts and emotions can manifest physically. That’s why, when you’re dreading something, you’ll have the feeling of knots in your stomach or you might get a headache stressing about it. There may not be any physical illness actually going on, but your mind is projecting the fear into a physical ailment. You can develop stomachaches, backaches and a whole host of other physical manifestations all related to what’s going on in your brain. Some studies have shown that it’s a two-way street. What goes on in your body can also have an impact on your brain and your emotions. Just as what you think can alter how you feel physically, what you eat can alter how feel emotionally and mentally. When there are issues going on in your digestive system, that can lead to you feeling stressed out. It can also lead to feelings of anxiety – and if not addressed, can even lead to you experiencing depression. Medical research has determined that probiotics are good for your digestive system. They keep everything working the way it’s supposed to. But now, it’s known that probiotics do far more for the body than just keeping the digestive system running smoothly. The research done involving a human study showed that this healthy bacteria can actually lessen the symptoms that are associated with depression. The probiotics have a positive impact on the portion of the brain that’s linked with depression symptoms as well as impacting other areas of the brain. Patients who are currently dealing with depression can take probiotics and will discover that the bacteria can take away the feelings of anxiety, irritability and feeling blue. It can boost mood levels. The reason probiotics can boost mood levels is because they work to decrease the reaction to stress that fuels depression. When a person takes probiotics, the bacteria works to increase Lactobacillus, which in turn restores the feel good hormones in the brain. By using probiotics, patients now have a new choice in treating depression symptoms – one that doesn’t carry the unhealthy side effects that depression medications sometimes have. When you add probiotics to your diet regularly, not only can you reverse the symptoms of depression, but you may be able to keep them from occurring in the future.