Healthy microorganisms reduce irritability in people with ADHD

There is more and more “scientific evidence” that having a healthy gut microbiota (the microflora that colonizes our digestive system) is “indispensable” not only for people’s bodies to “function” well, but also for their mental health. A study by researchers at the Vall d’Hebron Research Institute (VHIR) has now shown that symbiotics, a combination of probiotics and prebiotics (both of which are boosters of the gut flora), are a promising tool for treating irritability in adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and borderline personality disorder (BPD). This research once again focuses on the increasingly clear link between the gut microbiota and some patients with psychiatric disorders.

“We already knew, from previous studies, that patients with ADHD and BPD have an altered microbiota. We also saw that in patients attending psychiatric clinics, if we changed the microbiota, they could improve their symptoms,” explains Jara Arteaga, psychiatrist at the Hospital de la Vall d’Hebron and researcher at VHIR, to EL PERIÓDICO. She is one of the main figures in this study, in which Semmelweis University (Hungary) and Goethe University Hospital Frankfurt (Germany) also participated. The work, published in the journal Brain, Behavior and Immunity, involved 180 patients aged between 20 and 65, of whom 113 had ADHD; 44 had TTP; and 23 had been diagnosed with both conditions. All had symptoms of irritability and most were already taking another medication.

This study aims to find out what happens if this combination of symbiotics is given to patients with attention deficit and borderline personality disorder who also have “high levels of irritability.”

Clear improvement

Of the 180 patients examined, half were given a placebo and half were given symbiotics. “We saw that within 10 weeks, the patients we gave symbiotics had a much better response. We saw how their irritability and other symptoms, such as emotional dysregulation and inattention, improved. And how they performed better in many areas of their lives and at work,” says the psychiatrist.

According to Artiaga, there is more and more “scientific evidence” that having a healthy microbiota is “indispensable” for the body to “function well.” Therefore, people with an altered microbiota have “more diseases,” such as diabetes. But that’s not all. “A percentage of people with mental disorders have altered microbiota because these bacteria in the microbiota interact with hormones and with the inflammatory system in the body, both of which are essential for the brain to develop well.” Exercising, eating foods high in fiber, leafy greens or kefir, and getting good rest are all factors that contribute to healthy mental health.