Can Probiotics Help You Sleep?
You knew there were lots of herbs that could help you sleep. But the discovery that probiotics can help you sleep? That’s surprising!
The discovery that probiotics can help you sleep is surprising. But it is part of a growing body of evidence of what some researchers are now referring to as the microbiota-gut-brain axis. Increasing evidence is showing that microbiota in your gut communicate with the cognitive and emotional centers of your brain.
A startling recent study found that a blend of Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium probiotics could significantly improve sleep quality (Front Psychiatry. 2019;10:164), and a recent meta-analysis of 14 studies found that probiotics significantly improve sleep quality as measured by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (Eur J Clin Nutr 2020;74:1536-49).
Now a new meta-analysis of 6 controlled studies has looked at the effect of a probiotic called Lactobacillus gasseri on sleep. The 343 people in the studies were all experiencing mild, chronic stress.
The meta-analysis revealed that the probiotic supplement significantly improved the global score on the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Four of the six studies found a significant improvement in at least one score of sleep quality. EEG assessments also found significant improvement in a number of outcomes.
This novel meta-analysis shows that taking probiotics can improve sleep and sleep quality in people with mild to moderate stress. It also adds to the recent evidence that your gut and your brain talk to each other and that gut health, which is improved by probiotics, improves mental health.
Clin Nutr. 2023 Aug;42(8):1314-1321
This Beautiful Flower Could be Your Answer to Cholesterol
If you’re struggling to lower your cholesterol, this beautiful flower, taken as a herb, could be the answer for you.
Improving your cholesterol could be a key to improving your heart health and improving your life.
Saffron is emerging as a remarkably powerful and versatile herb. It has been shown to benefit Alzheimer’s, depression, anxiety, insomnia, OCD, ADHD, perimenopause, female sexual dysfunction, erectile dysfunction, diabetes and much more. Research has also suggested that saffron can help strokes and heart health.
This new double-blind study put saffron to the test for cholesterol. The study included 42 people with problems with at least two of total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, LDL cholesterol or triglycerides. Half of them were given 30mg of saffron petal extract, and half were given a placebo.
After 4 weeks, the people in the placebo group had no improvement. But people in the saffron group had significantly reduced total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and triglycerides. They also had significantly greater reduction of urea and the inflammatory marker c-reactive protein.
This study shows that taking saffron supplements improves cholesterol and may help in the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease.
Clinical Nutrition ESPEN June 2023;55:314-319
NAC Helps Pain & Fertility in Endometriosis
The many women with endometriosis suffer from painful periods, painful sex and chronic pelvic pain. Endometriosis is also associated with infertility. This new study gave N-acetylcysteine (NAC) to 120 women with endometriosis for 3 months. There was significant improvement in painful periods, painful intercourse, and chronic pelvic pain. The average size of the endometriomas was significantly reduced. 52 women in the study wanted to become pregnant, and 39 succeeded.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023 Mar;20(6):4686
Breath Better With Vitamin K
You know about vitamin K for your bones. You know your blood needs it to clot properly. But did you know you need it to breathe easy?
This study looked at a marker of vitamin K in 4,092 people between the ages of 24 and 77 and then asked them to breathe into a spirometer and to answer a questionnaire on their respiratory health.
People with low levels of vitamin K were able to breathe out less air in one second (forced expiratory volume) and had a lower total volume of air that they could breathe in one forced breath (forced vital capacity). These results suggest that people with low vitamin K have poorer lung function.
So, did this impaired lung function affect their lives? People with low vitamin K were more than twice as likely to report chronic obstructive lung disease (COPD), 44% more likely to say they had asthma and 81% more likely to report wheezing.
This may be the first study in a large population to show that getting enough vitamin K is crucial for healthy lungs.
ERJ Open Research. 2023; DOI: 10.1183/23120541.00208-2023
