Gut bacteria may be linked to high blood pressure and depression

Gut bacteria may be linked to high blood pressure and depression

Research of bacteria in the gut has recognized differences between people with high blood pressure as compared to those with high blood pressure as well as depression, according to preliminary research published at the American Heart Association’s Hypertension 2019 Scientific Sessions.

“People are ‘meta-organisms’ made up of estimated equal numbers of human cells and bacteria. Gut bacteria ecology is a major participant in the interactions with our bodily physiology and brains, which may drive some people towards developing high blood pressure and depression,” told Bruce R. Stevens, Ph.D., main author of the study and professor of physiology & functional genomics, medicine and psychiatry at the University of Florida College of Medicine in Gainesville, Florida.

“In the coming times, health professionals might have to target your gut for them to prevent, diagnose and even treat different forms of high blood pressure.”

Gut bacteria may be linked to high blood pressure and depression

Stevens said there’s a lot of scope for this research to discover the various treatment approaches that could vastly improve outcomes in people with treatment-resistant hypertension. Close to 20 percent of patients with high blood pressure don’t react effectively to treatment, even with various medications.

The analysts separated DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid, the carrier of genetic information) from gut bacteria taken from the stool samples of 105 volunteers. They also brought in a new technique that involves higher AI software to research more about the bacteria, which showed four distinct types of bacterial genes and signature molecules. Astonishingly, the investigators uncovered distinct patterns of bacteria from people with

1) high BP & depression

2) high BP without depression

3) depression & healthy BP

or 4) healthy subjects without depression or high BP.

Stevens said the results indicate various medical mechanisms of high BP that has a correlation with signature molecules that the gut bacteria produces. These molecules reportedly have the capacity to impact the cardiovascular system, metabolism, hormones, and even nervous mechanisms.