Hello readers! Just last month an interesting paper was published on links between the composition of bacteria in the guts of alcoholics seeking treatment, and psychological or physiological symptoms that are associated with relapse. The paper is by Leclercq et al. and comes from a variety of European labs, and is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA (find it here).
Essentially, the authors found that some, but not all, alcohol-dependent subjects developed gut leakiness, which was associated with higher scores of depression, anxiety, and alcohol cravings after a short period (three weeks) of abstinence in a treatment program. These may be important indicators of the potential for relapse. Subjects with gut leakiness had an altered composition of the gut bacterial community, and the bacteria were differently active (this was measured by studying the metabolic compounds that were present in feces).
What does this mean? It means that in some people, changes in gut bacterial community composition (dysbiosis) can lead to physical and psychological changes that affect mood, and possibly behavior. In this particular study, dysbiosis in the guts of some alcoholics resulted in effects that might make it more difficult for them to stay away from alcohol.
It may be possible in future to help people with substance abuse problems manage these problems with changes in diet and exercise! In fact, there’s no reason why a person can’t try to help manage these problems now by eating a healthy diet, getting regular sleep, and getting regular exercise. Probiotics may, in future, assist with problems like these but at the moment no products have been tested for helping with behavioral problems like alcohol abuse.