The past two years have been enough to test the nerves of even the calmest among us. There’s been a pandemic… a divisive election… and an overseas war that’s hitting especially close to home.
Honestly, I don’t even want to guess what’s coming next. But I did see a teaser for a “giant spider invasion” on one of my favorite news websites the other day. So I don’t know about you, but I’m bracing for anything.
Let’s face it. We’re all living with sky-high stress levels. Personally, I don’t know a soul who hasn’t battled some serious anxiety at some point in the last few years.
And I’d be willing to bet some drug industry executives are thrilled with this turn of events. After all, they now have a fresh new batch of potential customers in desperate need of some help restoring calm.
But you don’t need to give those stuffed suits the satisfaction. Because there’s another… better… stress-busting option you can try.
This drug-free anxiety solution is backed by science. And it could help restore tranquility for many folks even in these turbulent times.
Being stress-free starts… in the BELLY?
As strange as it sounds, calm could start in, of all places, your belly. Well, your intestines, if you want to get technical about it.
According to some exciting research, the solution to stress could be as simple as a healthy probiotic. It’s a discovery that, yet again, makes it clear that what happens in your gut has a direct impact on your brain.
But running out and grabbing the first probiotic you see is a mistake. Much of what you’ll find out there is junk, anyway.
Instead, if you want to address stress levels and dial down your anxiety, there’s a specific kind of good bacteria you’ll want to try. It’s called Bifidobacterium longum.
Stress relief isn’t this bug’s only benefit either. The unique probiotic strain is also proven to help with good digestion and provide immune system support. Plus, there’s even evidence Bifidobacterium longum has anti-cancer properties.
But let’s face it, getting through each day without feeling like pulling your hair out or jumping out of your skin might be this probiotic’s biggest benefit of all. Because with everyone’s stress levels off the charts lately, introducing some calm into the daily slog is priceless.
Researchers avoided “subjective” measurements of how volunteers felt when taking the B. longum supplements for the study. Because while that IS important, it’s also… well… subjective.
They needed something more OBJECTIVE that could be measured. So the researchers came up with an ingenious approach.
The participants were divided, and for four weeks, some received a look-alike placebo while others got the probiotic. Then they had the volunteers play a game that was specifically designed to trigger stress.
The folks who got the real-deal B. longum had positive brain changes that allowed them to blow off the stress far easier.
Start the countdown to calm
Those brain changes I just mentioned? They happened BEFORE the stress was even introduced into the study.
In other words, you could use a daily dose of the probiotic like a shield to help head off stress before it ever has a chance to do any damage.
And this isn’t the first time we’ve seen evidence that Bifidobacterium longum works, either. In fact, another study from a few years ago found it can be especially effective in seniors.
When combined with another good bug, Lactobacillus helveticus, it significantly slashed stress levels in just three weeks.
It’s more evidence to add to the growing stack of research that highlights what scientists call the “gut-brain axis.” That’s just a fancy way of saying that what goes on in your gut can directly impact things like mood, anxiety, and stress levels.
To give this calm-inducing solution a try, look for a high-quality probiotic supplement from a maker you trust that includes B. longum and other proven strains such as Lactobacillus.
Need a little extra help dialing down those anxiety levels? Probiotics aren’t the only natural stress solution proven to work. See my earlier report, “WIPE OUT stress with PROVEN natural superstars,” for more drug-free ways to chill out.
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