Reflecting on the methodological challenges of recruiting to a United Kingdom-wide, multi-centre, randomised controlled trial in gynaecology outpatient settings

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Big Thoughts, Small Wants: The Impact of Mental Construal on Impulse Strength

The way people mentally represent objects and events influences self-control; high-level construals, made up of abstract, global features, assist self-control, while low-level construals, made up of concrete, proximal features, hinder self-control. Previous research has assumed that high-level construals enhance self-control by increasing the salience of long-term goals (Fujita, Trope, Liberman, & Levin-Sagi, 2006). However, self-control is determined by not only a person’s ability to override an impulse, but also the motivational force that compels the impulse (impulse strength). The current investigation examined how mental construal affects visceral and need states (e.g., hunger) that determine impulse strength and undermine self-control. It was predicted that high-level construals would diminish the subjective intensity of hunger states, while low-level construals would intensify these feelings. Overall results showed that construal level did not impact subjective hunger states, and subsequently impulse strength, however exploratory findings revealed a relationship between construal level, eating tendencies, and subjective hunger. For restricted eaters, a high-level construal (versus a low-level construal) led to greater subjective hunger. For normal eaters, a high-level construal attenuated feelings of hunger. These results were attributed to the high-level construal’s influence on mood state. The current research provides a more comprehensive account of how mental construal impacts self-control and emphasizes the important role of impulse strength in self-regulation

Fermented foods, microbiota, and mental health: ancient practice meets nutritional psychiatry

The purposeful application of fermentation in food and beverage preparation, as a means to provide palatability, nutritional value, preservative, and medicinal properties, is an ancient practice. Fermented foods and beverages continue to make a significant contribution to the overall patterns of traditional dietary practices. As our knowledge of the human microbiome increases, including its connection to mental health (for example, anxiety and depression), it is becoming increasingly clear that there are untold connections between our resident microbes and many aspects of physiology. Of relevance to this research are new findings concerning the ways in which fermentation alters dietary items pre-consumption, and in turn, the ways in which fermentation-enriched chemicals (for example, lactoferrin, bioactive peptides) and newly formed phytochemicals (for example, unique flavonoids) may act upon our own intestinal microbiota profile. Here, we argue that the consumption of fermented foods may be particularly relevant to the emerging research linking traditional dietary practices and positive mental health. The extent to which traditional dietary items may mitigate inflammation and oxidative stress may be controlled, at least to some degree, by microbiota. It is our contention that properly controlled fermentation may often amplify the specific nutrient and phytochemical content of foods, the ultimate value of which may associated with mental health; furthermore, we also argue that the microbes (for example, Lactobacillus and Bifidobacteria species) associated with fermented foods may also influence brain health via direct and indirect pathways

Intestinal microbiota, probiotics and mental health: from Metchnikoff to modern advances: Part II – contemporary contextual research

In recent years there has been a renewed interest concerning the ways in which the gastrointestinal tract – its functional integrity and microbial residents – might influence human mood (e.g. depression) and behavioral disorders. Once a hotbed of scientific interest in the early 20th century, this area lay dormant for decades, in part due to its association with the controversial term ‘autointoxication’. Here we review contemporary findings related to intestinal permeability, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, lipopolysaccharide endotoxin (LPS) exposure, D-lactic acid, propionic acid, and discuss their relevance to microbiota and mental health. In addition, we include the context of modern dietary habits as they relate to depression, anxiety and their potential interaction with intestinal microbiota

Intestinal Microbiota, Probiotics and Mental Health: From Metchnikoff to Modern Advances: Part III – Convergence toward Clinical Trials

Rapid scientific and technological advances have allowed for a more detailed understanding of the relevance of intestinal microbiota, and the entire body-wide microbiome, to human health and well-being. Rodent studies have provided suggestive evidence that probiotics (e.g. lactobacillus and bifidobacteria) can influence behavior. More importantly, emerging clinical studies indicate that the administration of beneficial microbes, via supplementation and/or fecal microbial transplant (FMT), can influence end-points related to mood state (glycemic control, oxidative status, uremic toxins), brain function (functional magnetic resonance imaging fMRI), and mental outlook (depression, anxiety). However, despite the advances in the area of gastro-biological psychiatry, it becomes clear that there remains an urgent need to explore the value of beneficial microbes in controlled clinical investigations. With the history explored in this series, it is fair to ask if we are now on the cusp of major clinical breakthroughs, or are we merely in the quicksand of Autointoxication II

Intestinal Microbiota, Probiotics and Mental Health: From Metchnikoff to Modern Advances: Part I – Autointoxication Revisited

Mental health disorders, depression in particular, have been described as a global epidemic. Research suggests that a variety of lifestyle and environmental changes may be driving at least some portion of the increased prevalence. One area of flourishing research involves the relationship between the intestinal microbiota (as well as the related functional integrity of the gastrointestinal tract) and mental health. In order to appreciate the recent scientific gains in this area, and its potential future directions, it is critical to review the history of the topic. Probiotic administration (e.g. Lactobacillus) and fecal microbiota transfer for conditions associated with depression and anxiety is not a new concept. Here, in the first of a 3-part series, we begin by reviewing the origins of the contemporary research, providing a critical appraisal of what has become a revisionist history of the controversial term ‘autointoxication’. We argue that legitimate interests in the gut-brain-microbiota connection were obscured for decades by its association with a narrow historical legacy. Historical perspectives provide a very meaningful context to the current state of the contemporary research as outlined in parts II and III

High School Students\u27 Response to Writing Mentor Feedback of Mirrors, Windows, Doors Literature Circle

How do high school writers feel about feedback on their writing drafts from pre-service English teachers, when those drafts are written during a Mirrors, Windows, Doors Literature Circles unit?https://scholarworks.moreheadstate.edu/celebration_posters_2023/1026/thumbnail.jp