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I love a good sour pickle, but had no idea that when naturally fermented, pickles could be the answer to HAPPINESS! This has nothing to do with the enjoyment one gets from their taste; pickles, like other naturally fermented foods actually have the ability to relieve anxiety and thus produce greater experience of joy. This is known as the “anxiolytic effect.”
Reported by “Smithsonian Magazine”, neurosis and anxiety can be indirectly altered by consuming pickles and other fermented foods, such as sauerkraut. This effect was scientifically studied at the College of William and Mary, by researcher Matthew Hilimire.
His results showed a significant reduction in social anxiety and neuroticism, in individuals who ate fermented foods daily. This “anxiolytic effect” was published in the “National Center for Biotechnology Information.”
The video you are about to watch below, does a fantastic job of explaining this phenomenon. It turns out that the stomach is actually a “second brain!” You may have heard that people who suffer from depression and benefit from anti-depressants, do so because their “serotonin” (which has been depleted) gets replenished.
Amazingly, 90% of the serotonin in our bodies is found in the stomach. Fermented foods have a positive effect on our digestive system due to their richness in probiotics, which in turn increases our serotonin!
It has been determined by scientists that a healthier stomach leads to a healthier brain. This occurs because of the boost in serotonin which increases happiness, by promoting healthier thinking and reducing distorted anxiety-laden thinking.
For a fuller explanation of this wonderful link between pickles and fermented foods and their impact on our sense of well-being, enjoy the following video.
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