That's how it is. Mark Lyte, from Texas Technological University (USA), has shown that after ingesting small doses of Campylobacter jejuni , one of the bacteria that causes the most food poisoning in the world, anxiety levels increase in the brain . To this is added that certain gastrointestinal bacteria that colonize the small intestine just after birth, and then accompany us throughout life, increase anxiety and fear, as well as sensitivity to stress , as Jane Foster has proven, from McMaster University (Canada).
Quite the opposite happens with Mycobacterium vaccae , a harmless microbe that lives in the ground and that we inhale when we take a walk in the field, lie on the grass, play in the park or fix the plants in the garden. According to a recent study published in the journal Neuroscience , this microbe stimulates neurons in the prefrontal cortex of the human brain to release serotonin, the neurotransmitter for happiness and well-being, which puts us in a good mood and counteracts fear and the anxiety.
