YourGutBrain – Yoghurt to alter gut movements and brain function

Increasing evidence suggests that bowel habits are linked to mental health. Intestinal transit time is a key factor shaping the gut microbiota composition and activity, and alterations in transit time (i.e. constipation) are linked to altered patterns of brain communication. Given that consumption of fermented dairy has been reported to accelerate intestinal transit time and to affect cognitive performance, the project consortium propose that the gut-brain axis can be targeted by fermented dairy affecting bowel movements. Therefore, this project seeks to investigate whether intake of fermented dairy in comparison with non-fermented dairy increases weekly bowel movements and concordantly improves cognitive performance.

By: Grith Mortensen

Long colonic transit time (e.g. constipation) has been associated with lower quality of life, alterations in brain networks, and it has been shown to be a predictor of cognitive decline in elderly and in Parkinson’s patients. Thus, diet-induced alterations of intestinal transit time could potentially be a way to affect the bidirectional communication between the gut and the brain.

This project seeks to investigate whether intake of fermented dairy in comparison with non-fermented dairy increases weekly bowel movements and concordantly improves cognitive performance. The project will involve a randomized, controlled crossover trial in healthy women (55-65 years of age) with few bowel movements per week with two 4-weeks intervention periods comprising intake of 200g/day of fermented dairy and non-fermented dairy, respectively, separated by a 2-4 week washout period. The study will assess a wide range of outcomes including bowel habits, intestinal transit time, gut microbiome, gut metabolome, colonic fermentation, as well as measures of mood, sleep, cognitive performance, and brain activity through validated questionnaires, neuropsychological tests, and electroencephalography, respectively.

The project brings together a multi-disciplinary team of experts across nutrition, diet-microbiome interactions, cognitive performance, and neuroimaging to uncover novel causal and mechanistic evidence of fermented dairy as an approach to optimize gut health and cognition. Such knowledge will comprise great immediate translational value for the public, the dairy industry, and healthcare professionals.