Methods
depression, gastrointestinal sensations, anxiety
We conducted a 5-wk, 4-arm, parallel, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial in 92 healthy adults with mild-to-moderate levels of anxiety and depression. Subjects were randomized to oligofructose 8 g/d (plus 2 g/d maltodextrin); maltodextrin 10 g/d; oligofructose 8 g/d plus 2’fucosyllactose (2 g/d) or 2’fucosyllactose 2 g/d (plus 8 g/d maltodextrin). Changes in microbial load (fluorescence in situ hybridization-flow cytometry) and composition (16S ribosomal RNA sequencing) were the primary outcomes. Secondary outcomes included gastrointestinal sensations, bowel habits, and mood state parameters.