Such knowledge could form the basis of new treatments for psychiatric or neurological disorders. The team is led by Iris Sommer and Jenny Borkent. Lowlands is this year from 18 - 20 August.
Gut bacteria contribute to gut health. Mice that grow up without gut bacteria turn out to be very anxious animals. When those mice are provided with gut bacteria after all, they become a lot more chilled. They get 'guts'.
Iris Sommer and her team wonder if the same is happening in humans. 'If mice get gut bacteria from anxious humans, they also start behaving more anxiously. But proper research into the influence of gut bacteria on people's temperament is lacking.' An important research question is therefore whether certain human character traits can be associated with bacterial species in the gut. For example, do people who are neurotically inclined have less diverse populations in their gut? And what role does nutrition play?
Knowledge about the links between nutrition, gut bacteria (the 'microbiome') and mental well-being offers great tools for developing new treatments for people with psychiatric and neurological disorders, such as depression or Parkinson's disease. But also for healthy, young people -such as the Lowlands visitors- nutrition and a healthy microbiome is important for mental well-being. According to Iris Sommer, food not only contains the building blocks for the body, but also for the neurotransmitters in your brain. 'Gut bacteria help determine how many of thos neurotransmitters are made. They are therefore important for good health and mental well-being. So feed not only yourself, but also your gut bacteria. They like to eat fibres, which can be found in fruit, vegetables and wholemeal products'.
Sommer and Borkent are delighted to be able to conduct their research at Lowlands. Borkent: 'Lowlands Science is the place to investigate this, as there are many visitors interested in science and they all have to poop during the festival.'
The team already knows exactly how they will conduct their research and collect visitors' poop: 'Instead of the cramped dixies in the poop and pee corner, we offer visitors a lovely stay on a golden toilet. They may take all the time they need on the golden toilet to do their business and collect a small scoop of their poo for us. We will also ask the participants some questions about their personality and eating habits. We are hoping for around 300 participants.'
Afterwards, all data will be analysed. Sommer: 'We will determine the composition of intestinal bacteria in the poo and then link that to personality traits and nutrition. We do these analyses together with other experts from the UMCG.' In the UMCG, a lot of research is done on the functioning and influence of the gut microbiome on health; not only on gut health, but also on whole-body health and mental well-being. Sommer: 'It's great that we can collaborate with this globally recognised centre of expertise on the microbiome for this research.'
According to Sommer and Borkent, the potential of this research should not be underestimated: 'It gives us the opportunity to share the importance of nutrition and gut bacteria with a young audience. We will announce the results in 2024.'
