Hacker News Reader

Comment by krjachkov | Hacker News Reader

I used to struggle with anxiety and depression (it's very likely was stress-induced depression), and nothing seemed to help. But then I read a similar research article about how gut health could affect mental health. So I started eating more fiber and multiple probiotics. And guess what? My mood improved! I felt less anxious and depressed and more energized. It's crazy to think that something as simple as gut health could make such a difference in a brain.

View on HN

> multiple probiotics.

I get overwhelmed when researching probiotics and end up with buyers dillema. Which ones did you find helpful?

Yogurt and pickles.

Kefir!

Kimchi. My favorite is from Chi Kitchen in Pawtucket RI.

Because having higher biodiversity in your gut microbiome is associated with various health benefits, including reduced tendency to acquired new allergies, it seems that the more probiotic strains present, the better. Therefore, a supplement offering "5 Billion Probiotics!" with only one or a few strains may be less beneficial than than one offering 40 different strains.

Probiotics supplements that are always kept refrigerated at a suitable temperature range are said to have a tendency for greater potency, simply because more of the cells survive.

I would just cycle through whatever you'd like to eat and include at least one probiotic source. For me that's usually yogurts(they're a good snack after a walk and it's easy to sample different ones).

I tried so many of them, I use now Raw (Garden of Life) refrigerated probiotics, they seem to work in my case.

My educated guess based on science I've read:

A combination of a probiotic juice containing postbiotic metabolites(they're what maintains a healthy microbiome) with a high dose(billions of CFU) freeze dried one might be optimal. I strongly suspect that taking them with each meal to give them a competitive advantage in colonizing food during transit and subsequently deposition onto colon walls is beneficial.

Response to individual strains is highly dependent on your existing microbiome, so just try whatever contains a decent variety of at least lactobacillus and bifidobacter strains. I've had luck with JoyDay probiotic juice concentrate plus Swanson's Ultimate 16 strain one.

Probiotics are often unnecessary. A healthy microbiome can be fostered by eating plenty of fresh fruits, vegetables, and fermented foods (yogurt, kefir, etc). There's lots of beneficial bacteria in the environment on the outside of fruit and vegetable for example. High fiber diets also make the environment in your gut better for these microbes so they're more likely to stick around.

I think that probiotics are great but are no replacement for a balanced diet with plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables.

I tried a lot of different ones (over a decade). pendulum and seed both worked the best for me and ended up with seed due to cost.

Restricted time window fasting had a tangible impact on me too (psoriasis vanished 50%) for a while, slept better and less joint pain too. It's not always a silver bullet (causes stress maintaining it in the long run too) but it was interesting to experience it.

For myself, it's hard to overstate just how much better I feel using time restricted eating (even with just a 14/10 window). I've done it off and on over the years, but recently had to start again because I was getting mild GERD symptoms. It's basically fixed them completely.

But beyond just the feeling, you can see it directly in my Apple Watch data. HRV goes up considerably. RHR goes down. Estimated VO2 Max does up.

Time restriction seems to be a _VERY_ powerful mechanism for promoting health and wellness.

I also had mild GERD issues, nothing major, no waking up with burns. What did you change ?

I plan to try a 5/2 diet. eTRF makes me feel tired often and any external stress is difficult to handle. I think 5 normal days and 2 days of full fast during the week might feel good. It may also change metabolism deeper.. I don't know.

All I did was go back from standard American feeding window to a 14/10 window. I stop eating at 7PMish and eat again after 10AM. I've seen studies that show 14/10 is about as good as 16/8.

How long did you try eTRF? It takes time to adapt. Ultimately your body needs to up regulate ketone production or you will feel tired because you really don't have enough energy. Lots of fast carbs will spike insulin and suppress ketone production if you are hyperinsulinemic.

I forgot precisely.. probably mid-Jan. I'm patient and will keep a month or so to see if things get stable, it's mostly positive so far.

What's your window like?

So people talked a lot about eTRF (early Time restricted fast) so I went for 7am-4pm but it was a bit hard, now i'm between 8/16 and 10/14, trying to eat early if I can, but otherwise it's more like 10am - 6pm.

Daily issues make it hard to be very regular, but some say variability might be good either.

10am-6pm and Zinc helped a lot with my hemorhoids

Ah I was thinking it would be a smaller window like 10-2pm or something. This seems pretty doable though. I do notice I sleep better if I stop eating before 7pm

Things are fuzzy, every span is OK as long as you have more than 12h without ingesting food.

Some say the important is to eat early.. but well.

I'm going through the same thing. I spent the last year constantly ill, barely able to get out of bed. Day 5 of probiotics with each meal, and I'm rediscovering my creative enthusiasm.

What probiotics did you take? Like tablets or specific foods like yogurt etc?

If you go the yogurt route give Nancy's a try. They put probiotics in it after the pasteurization process.

Pasteurization kills the probiotic cultures along with whatever contaminating cultures may have been present, so adding probiotics afterwards makes sense. I just look for "with active cultures" on the label.

Kefir

Reply on news.ycombinator.com