PROMOTE
Research type
Research Study
Full title
PROMOTE: A double-blinded randomised placebo-controlled parallel trial to assess the impact of prebiotic supplementation on the wellbeing of young adults with self-reported mild or moderate stress.
IRAS ID
340693
Contact name
Jonathan Swann
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Southampton - Head of research ethics and governance
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 8 months, 0 days
Research summary
Gut bacteria have a profound influence on our health. Researchers have shown gut bacteria play an important role in mood and have established several observational links between the microbiome and mental health. There appears to be a communication pathway between the gut and brain facilitated by the gut bacteria. How exactly the bacteria elicit communication remains uncertain, it is thought they potentially communicate through chemical messengers the bacteria produce that play functional roles in our own health.
Stress and anxiety are major risk factors for the development of chronic mental and neurological conditions. Limiting acute stress and anxiety triggers is essential to prevent the development of more serious chronic complications. Modification of the gut bacteria may present the opportunity to dampen responses to stress and anxiety through their produced chemical messengers. Prebiotics are food compounds not digested by the host, but act as food sources for the gut bacteria to promote the growth of bacteria associated with good health and are currently being explored in various contexts for mental health.
So far, clinical outcomes vary across studies, some found improvements in self-reflective indices of anxiety and stress though, very few if any have managed to confirm biological mechanisms of crosstalk to explain how prebiotics work to promote better self-reflective measures of wellbeing.
This intervention will explore if prebiotic supplements alter biological stress responses, compared to a placebo in a group of young adults with self-reported mild-to-moderate stress. Supportive chemical analysis using blood, stool and urine collected during the intervention may highlight potential biological mechanisms that explain how supplements interact with the host to improve mental and neurological conditioning.
REC name
South Central - Hampshire A Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
24/SC/0195
Date of REC Opinion
22 Jul 2024
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion