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. 2022 Jan 17:15:831193.
doi: 10.3389/fnins.2021.831193. eCollection 2021.

Impending Mental Health Issues During Coronavirus Disease 2019 - Time for Personalized Nutrition Based on the Gut Microbiota to Tide Over the Crisis?

Debojyoti Dhar  1
Affiliations

Impending Mental Health Issues During Coronavirus Disease 2019 - Time for Personalized Nutrition Based on the Gut Microbiota to Tide Over the Crisis?

Debojyoti Dhar. Front Neurosci. .

Abstract

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a major pandemic facing the world today caused by SARS-CoV-2 which has implications on our mental health as well. The uncertain future, fear of job loss, lockdown and negative news all around have taken a heavy toll on the mental health of individuals from across the world. Stress and anxiety can affect the COVID-19 patients even more. Recent study suggests COVID-19 infection may lead to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Certain prebiotics and probiotics have been shown to have anxiolytic effect through gut microbiota modulation. Incidentally, preliminary report also suggests a differential microbial profile in COVID-19 patients as compared to healthy individuals. Gut microbiota's role in anxiety and depression is well studied. The importance of the "gut-brain" axis has been implicated in overall mental health. It is known that diet, environmental factors and genetics play an important role in shaping gut microbiota. Trials may be initiated to study if personalized diet and supplementation based on individual's gut microbiome profile may improve the general mental well-being of people prone to anxiety during this pandemic. Also, COVID-19 patients may be provided personalized nutritional therapy based on their gut microbiota profile to see if PTSD and anxiety symptoms can be alleviated.

Keywords: COVID-19; gut microbiome; mental health; nutrition; precision medicine.

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Conflict of interest statement

DD is the Director of Leucine Rich Bio (LRB), which is South Asia’s first microbiome company.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Coronavirus disease 2019 itself and various stressors may impact the gut microbiota which can lead to gut dysbiosis. Gut dysbiosis may be implicated in anxiety and depression both in COVID-19 patients and healthy individuals exposed to various stressors.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Personalized nutritional strategies including diet, prebiotics, and probiotics combination based on the individual’s gut microbiome can improve mental health conditions.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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