The primary purpose of this article critique is to review and evaluate the correlation between gut health and an individual personality. The main study on how gut microbes can influence personality traits was conducted by Ali Boolani from Clarkson University and other colleagues from various universities. In this article, the researchers proved the correlation between gut and brain depending on their exploratory studies. Therefore, this article critique aims to assess Ali’s study to evaluate the validity, design, and proper inferences derived from the study.
For Ali and colleagues to complete their study, they came up with a hypothesis and research questions for the study. Their findings stated four traits that may have specific but overlapping gut bacteria evidence. These are mental tiredness, brain energy, physical tiredness, and physical strength. The released report stated that thousands of distinct bacteria exist in the gut and include the gut microbiome. However, factors that determine the number of bacteria in the gut include physical activity rates, dietary habits, and health status. The author also revealed that the bacteria are more stable and active in adult life unless the host takes antibiotics.
Additionally, despite the authors noting the stability of personality traits, they did not state the bacterium associated with them. The author stated that there is a need to explore and research gut microbiota to ascertain its correlation with mood and cognitiveness after an individual has taken different nutrients. According to them, the primary focus should not only be on neurotransmitters. Another shortcoming of the study is that the final release is uncertain because the test subjects were inadequate; hence they advocate for larger studies. In his previous research, Ali confirmed that energy feelings are connected to metabolic processes, while fatigue is correlated to inflammatory processes.
However, to ascertain the validity of the research, it is evident that personality has been linked to health effects in mental diseases and has an impact on core behavior tendencies. According to extensive studies, the gut microbiota has been shown to impact all areas of physiology, especially gut-brain interaction, brain performance, and cognition. Actions perform an essential role in the link between the gut and the brain. Although a relationship between the gut microbiota and tension, anxiety, and anxiety-related behaviors has lately been proven in rodents, studies in humans provide insufficient data. This could be due to the complexity of assessing delicate biological alterations in human psychological and behavioral function, as well as the complexities of examining microbiota, which is influenced by dietary distinctions, external exposures, sexual identity discrepancies, and the complexity of evaluating delicate biological transformations in human psychological and behavioral function. The gut microbiota is relatively steady in healthy individuals. The microbiome maintains a healthy condition in maturity; therefore, studying the patterns of traits-gut relationships in adults is vital.
Researchers discovered a substantial link between some personality traits and bacteria that live in each individual’s microbiome. The study population size is limited; Boolani is optimistic that the results will serve as a springboard for further research into how individuals’ gut affects their mood. They anticipate that the larger research will provide them with more solid findings. Then we can investigate if these results can certainly illustrate individual disparities in dietary therapies aimed at modifying emotions of energy and exhaustion,’ said Boolani. Therefore, this preliminary study helps them decide whether they should continue this line of inquiry to look into the relationship involving gut microbiota and these 4 personal characteristics. While the idea of a correlation between intestinal health and character may initially appear strange, it is not completely new. The internal biological functions of an individual can either exhaust or energize them. Energy and exhaustion levels can influence how individuals respond to external cues, shaping their character.
