Course: Food for Thought: The Relationship Between Food, Gut and Brain

In this final week, we showed how modifying the microbiota can affect the brain. Is there any evidence of the contrary – that is, that the brain can modify the …

Are there interventions that can improve our mind by enhancing our gut microbiota? In this video, we explore the results of some studies that investigated this topic in humans, trying …

In this video, we explore in more detail the relationship between the microbiome and our mind. Most studies on the topic actually involve animals, as we already saw in the …

Lactobacilli, bifidobacteria, staphylococcus.. what are they? Our gut microbiota is composed of different species of bacteria, all competing for resources: food and “living space”. Some of these bacteria produce metabolic …

How do the gut and the brain talk with each other? In the first week, we mentioned that the gut-brain axis is not clearly defined as the neuroendocrine axes. Multiple …

Can coffee, chocolate and tea improve our brain health? Caffeine is a molecule common to these three foods – and more. We are all acquainted with its effects on wakefulness …

What is oxidation? Oxidation is a chemical process that occurs virtually everywhere in nature, and it involves the transfer of electrons from an atom to another one. When talking about …

Essential fatty acids and brain health In this activity, we will explore the beneficial roles of certain foods – from mother’s milk to tea and chocolate – for our brain. …

What are primary and secondary emotions? An emotion is a mental and physiological feeling state that directs our attention and guides our behaviour. The most fundamental emotions are widely believed …

Here are some definitions of terms that you encountered during week 1, or will encounter during the next weeks. Adrenal glands Two endocrine glands placed above the kidneys. They secrete …

What are cognitions? The term cognition can be used broadly to describe a mental action of acquiring and understanding information and knowledge, by incorporating our thoughts and our past experiences. …

The brain constantly communicates with the rest of the body It receives input from the sensory organs: our tongue, eyes, skin, ears, nose, and through receptors that monitor the internal …

The discovery of the blood-brain barrier At the end of the previous video we mentioned the blood-brain barrier – but what is it, exactly? It is not a structure or …

Does the microbiome affect our body? Are there any connections between the microbiome and our brain function? This video shows the connections between gut microbiota and the brain. It stresses …

How does a mother’s milk affect brain development and function? This video explains why we require mother’s milk as newborns. It shows that many milk-borne factors can affect an adult’s …