2024-07-12 12:53:28
The first author of this publication is Solveiga Samulėnaitė, PhD student of VU Life Sciences Center and Neuropharmacology Laboratory of Pompeu Fabra University (Barcelona).
The study, led by Dr. Aurelijus Burokas in Lithuania and prof. Rafael Maldonado together with dr. Elena Martín-García in Spain, was carried out in Barcelona in collaboration with Spanish, Irish and Japanese institutions.
The study examines how certain gut bacteria may influence the susceptibility to food addiction, a condition characterized by compulsive overeating of “highly palatable” foods, usually high in sugar and fat, which can lead to obesity and other serious health problems.
How was the research conducted?
During the experiments, Dr. S. Samulėnaitė and her colleagues used a mouse food addiction model: “During the study, mice were given drinking water with two different prebiotics (lactulose or rhamnose) and bacteria Blautia wexleraewhich is mentioned in the scientific literature as reducing the risk of obesity and diabetes.”
The obtained results are promising: both prebiotics and Blautia wexlerae significantly reduced the development of food addiction, and prebiotics increased the population of the genus Blautia in the intestine of mice. According to the doctoral student, these results show that bacteria of the genus Blautia can protect against the development of an eating disorder.
“Our study shows that modulation of the intestinal microbiota with prebiotics or probiotics could be a potential strategy for fighting food addiction,” says S. Samulėnaitė.
The research team also conducted research on people who were diagnosed with food addiction using the Yale Food Addiction Questionnaire. The researchers found that those with food addictions had less in their guts wet genus bacteria.
“This finding highlights the importance of the gut microbiota and shows that an unhealthy diet that causes an imbalance in the gut microbiota may be linked to the development of food addiction.” The reproducible results obtained between mouse and human cohorts confirm that a specific microbiota profile is required for the development of food addiction and demonstrate wet the preventive significance of the genus for the development of food addiction”, says Dr. S. Samulėnaitė.
Food Addiction: Why Does It Matter?
Food addiction is a neurological eating disorder associated with the consumption of today’s popular fast food. These foods are high in sugar and fat, which can cause changes in the brain seen in other addictions.
“In fact, food addiction is characterized by similar neurobiological mechanisms as other addictions, so the changes in the brain lead to greater compulsivity, poorer impulse control, impaired memory and other symptoms, which make it difficult to return to a healthy rhythm of life,” says the author of the study.
Food addiction manifests itself in symptoms such as compulsive eating despite the feeling of fullness or discomfort and pain caused by overeating. People affected by food addiction may experience anxiety, anger, and an increased need to eat in order to suppress the negative emotions they are feeling when trying to stop unhealthy eating.
“However, due to the paradox that food, which is vital to us, can cause addiction, and the mechanism by which food addiction occurs is not fully understood, this eating disorder is still not officially included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.” Currently, the only diagnostic method is the Yale Food Addiction Questionnaire,” says the researcher.
Gut microbiota and the brain axis
The impact of gut microbiota on health is not limited to the digestive system, but has important implications for metabolism, obesity, diabetes and even brain function. A growing body of research is supporting the role of the microbiota in the development of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, depression, and even developmental disorders such as autism.
It is believed that by modulating the composition of the gut microbiota, it would be possible to prevent or slow down the progression of various systemic and central nervous system diseases, such as food addiction.
This research by scientists could have significant implications for public health, as the discovered bacteria and prebiotics could be used as a new strategy to tackle the obesity epidemic and related health problems.
“This study reveals the potential of the gut microbiota as a therapeutic approach in the treatment of food addiction. Further research is necessary in the future to elucidate the exact mechanisms and develop effective microbiota-based treatments or preventive measures,” says Dr. A. Burok.
2024-07-12 12:53:28