{"id":16061,"date":"2022-08-15T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-08-14T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/?post_type=purple_issue&p=16061"},"modified":"2022-08-22T11:35:36","modified_gmt":"2022-08-22T09:35:36","slug":"eating-marmite-could-ease-anxiety-and-depression","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/2022\/08\/15\/eating-marmite-could-ease-anxiety-and-depression\/","title":{"rendered":"Eating Marmite could ease anxiety and depression"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

EATING MARMITE COULD EASE ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION <\/h2>\n\n

B vitamins found in the spread may help the brain produce calming neurochemicals <\/p>\n\n

Sorry, haters, here\u2019s yet another reason to love Marmite: vitamin B6 \u2013 a nutrient found in abundance in the yeast extract \u2013 may help to reduce feelings of anxiety and depression, a study carried out by researchers at the University of Reading has found. <\/p>\n\n

The team gathered together a group of nearly 500 volunteers aged between 18 and 58, 265 of whom had self-reported anxiety and 146 had self-reported depression. <\/p>\n\n

\"\"
Happy chemicals: crystals of vitamin B6, as viewed under a microscope<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n

They then split them into three subgroups. One group was given 100mg doses of vitamin B6 supplements every day for a month, a second received 1mg doses of B12 supplements, and a final group got a placebo. <\/p>\n\n

The researchers also had all participants complete questionnaires designed to assess mood and feelings throughout the study. They found that the participants who took vitamin B6 reported feeling less anxious and depressed after taking the supplements. <\/p>\n\n

While previous studies have suggested that consuming Marmite may help to reduce feelings of anxiety and depression, exactly which nutrients were responsible for the effect remained unclear until now. <\/p>\n\n

The team found that the calming effect was likely due to vitamin B6 increasing the body\u2019s production of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), a neurotransmitter that inhibits impulses between nerve cells in the brain. <\/p>\n\n

\u201cVitamin B6 helps the body produce a specific chemical messenger that inhibits impulses in the brain\u201d <\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n

\u201cThe functioning of the brain relies on a delicate balance between the excitatory neurons that carry information around and inhibitory ones, which prevent runaway activity,\u201d said lead author Dr David Field, of the University of Reading. \u201cRecent theories have connected mood disorders and some other neuropsychiatric conditions with a disturbance of this balance, often in the direction of raised levels of brain activity. Vitamin B6 helps the body produce a specific chemical messenger that inhibits impulses in the brain, and our study links this calming effect with reduced anxiety among the participants.\u201d <\/p>\n\n

Don\u2019t worry if you fall into the haters\u2019 camp. Vitamin B6 can also be found in tuna, chickpeas and many different fruits and vegetables. However, the doses used in the study are much higher than the amount that could typically be consumed from food, the researchers caution. <\/p>\n\n

\u201cIt is important to acknowledge that this research is at an early stage and the effect of vitamin B6 on anxiety in our study was quite small compared to what you would expect from medication,\u201d said Field. <\/p>\n\n

\u201cHowever, nutrition-based interventions produce far fewer unpleasant side effects than drugs, and so in the future people might prefer them as an intervention. <\/p>\n\n

\u201cFurther research is needed to identify other nutrition-based interventions that benefit mental wellbeing, allowing different dietary interventions to be combined in future to provide greater results.\u201d <\/p>\n\n

IMAGE: SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

EATING MARMITE COULD EASE ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION B vitamins found in the spread may help the brain produce calming neurochemicals Sorry, haters, here\u2019s yet another reason to love Marmite: vitamin B6 \u2013 a nutrient found in abundance in the yeast extract \u2013 may help to reduce feelings of anxiety and depression, a study carried out […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":16060,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ub_ctt_via":"","purple_page_number":"20","purple_custom_meta_purple_page_number":"20","purple_seq_number":"1","purple_custom_meta_purple_seq_number":"1","purple_source_article":"article_20-1.xml","purple_custom_meta_purple_source_article":"article_20-1.xml","purple_source_issue":"August-2022","purple_custom_meta_purple_source_issue":"August-2022","purple_external_id":"August-2022-20-1","purple_custom_meta_purple_external_id":"August-2022-20-1","purple_issue_code":"|0000089657||","purple_custom_meta_purple_issue_code":"|0000089657||","purple_android_product":"com.focus.magazine.issue381","purple_custom_meta_purple_android_product":"com.focus.magazine.issue381","purple_ios_product":"com.focus.magazine.issue381","purple_custom_meta_purple_ios_product":"com.focus.magazine.issue381","purple_web_product":"","purple_custom_meta_purple_web_product":"","purple_publication_id":"0f422ad1-c939-476d-9f82-a410052ad4c3","purple_migrated":"","kt_blocks_editor_width":"","apple_news_api_created_at":"2022-08-15T15:38:08Z","apple_news_article-theme":"","apple_news_api_id":"04be0ca5-5706-4d9d-b842-de0d6efea46a","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2022-08-22T09:35:42Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABw==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/ABL4MpVcGTZ24Qt4Nbv6kag","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":true,"apple_news_is_preview":true,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_article_theme":"","apple_news_sections":"[]"},"categories":[25],"tags":[15],"apple_news_notices":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/d1969985-173f-45e8-97a6-f12204c37b93.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"3","apple_news_title":""},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/d1969985-173f-45e8-97a6-f12204c37b93.jpg",1445,1865,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/d1969985-173f-45e8-97a6-f12204c37b93-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/d1969985-173f-45e8-97a6-f12204c37b93-232x300.jpg",232,300,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/d1969985-173f-45e8-97a6-f12204c37b93-768x991.jpg",768,991,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/d1969985-173f-45e8-97a6-f12204c37b93-793x1024.jpg",793,1024,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/d1969985-173f-45e8-97a6-f12204c37b93-1190x1536.jpg",1190,1536,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/d1969985-173f-45e8-97a6-f12204c37b93.jpg",1445,1865,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcsciencefocus\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"EATING 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