This Daily Gut Routine May Keep Your Brain Sharp as You Age, New Study Finds

Maintaining good gut health has become a priority for many people. From taking probiotics to eating fermented foods, optimizing the performance of the microbes in your digestive system is all the rage. And these habits don't just help things run smoothly; they also can boost your brain health.

A new study published in the Journal of Nutrition Research found that modulating the gut microbiome might help older adults with early cognitive decline improve their thinking skills. While the researchers emphasize that more "rigorous, standardized, and well-powered clinical trials" need to be done in this area, they report that a healthy gut can complement "existing pharmacological and lifestyle interventions.”

In the study, the researchers looked at the effects of probiotics, prebiotics, dietary interventions, and fecal microbial transfer (FMT) and how they might protect cognitive health. The review included data from 15 studies in 10 countries and more than 4,200 participants ages 45 or older.

Overall, they discovered that the various approaches reduced inflammation in the brain, altered neurotransmitter signaling, and increased levels of microbial metabolites (the small molecules produced during metabolism).

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The dietary interventions included the Mediterranean diet, ketogenic diet, and omega-3 and methyl-donor supplements, including B12, folate, choline, and methionine.

These approaches were shown to have the potential to remodel the gut microbiome; increase the production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), which communicate between the gut and brain; stabilize neurotransmitter networks; and reduce inflammation in the brain, all of which can promote cognitive health.

As for probiotics and synbiotics (a mix of pre- and probiotics), the researchers concluded that they may improve verbal fluency and executive function, which includes working memory and cognitive flexibility.

And while there are far fewer studies on FMT, the review found that this approach was associated with a more rapid change in the gut microbiome in people with Alzheimer’s disease than with probiotics, synbiotics, or dietary interventions.

The study authors concluded that "community education, nutritional counseling during midlife, and the inclusion of microbiota-supportive diets in national guidelines could provide scalable and cost-effective means of extending cognitive healthspan and reducing the burden of dementia."