The Maneuver of Psychobiotics in the Medical Aid of Clinical Depression
Abstract
The field of psychology has advanced over the years in treating psychiatric disorders such as major depressive disorder (MDD), Schizophrenia, and Alzheimer's disease (AD). Depression or clinical depression is a major mental health issue characterized by chronic sadness, hopelessness, and emptiness, which diminishes the patient's quality of life. According to WHO, an estimated 3.8% of the world's population experience depression, in which 15% of depressed patients eventually die by suicide. Recent studies in treating depressive patients have progressed with the usage of psychobiotics. Psychobiotics contain both probiotics and prebiotics, meaning psychobiotics possess the ability to introduce beneficial bacteria in the gut as well as support the growth of existing bacteria in the human gut. The gut-brain axis, which mediates the mechanism of action of psychobiotics in treating clinical depression, has been cleverly studied, and it provides promising results in the improvement of a patient's mental health status. Psychobiotics have proven their worth not only in upgrading the patient's mental health in psychological disorders but also in the enhancement of overall patient health by improving one's gut health.
Keywords: Clinical depression, Gut-brain axis, Major depressive disorder (MDD), Psychobiotics
