While some things in life are best forgotten, our memories build the framework of intelligence — cognitive, emotional, and social — enabling a rich existence. Memory is required to learn a language, drive a car, write computer code, keep a friend and, of course, remember where you put the keys. Decades of research have revealed […]
memory
Inulin: A Prebiotic to Remember
If you can’t recall the top food sources of inulin, keep reading. Soluble fiber such as inulin—a prebiotic—may offset dysbiosis common in aging, potentially leading to mental benefits such as improving memory. These fibers can’t be digested but they can be fermented; bacteria feast on them like guests raiding your pantry and in the process, leave behind short-chain fatty acids […]
Probiotics and Memory: A Conflicted Study
Coming across less than stellar news about probiotics is rare, like reading about Mother Teresa’s doubts on her faith. However accustomed as we are to the rushing train of probiotic and prebiotic benefits rolling through our labs, microbial science is still a track of discovery where conflicting or negative results deserve ample attention. Researchers at […]
Probiotics: A No-Brainer for Brain Health
Drugs target serotonin to reduce depression and other mood disorders. Could probiotics do the same, given that the microbiome is one smooth operator in gut-brain signaling?[i] Researchers Caroline J. K. Wallace and Roumen Milev of Queens University in Ontario asked the same in “The effects of probiotics on depressive symptoms in humans: a systematic review” which appeared in Annals of […]