The Long-term Association of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder with Dietary Pattern and Gut Microbiome in a Cohort of Women

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric condition that may occur in people who have experienced or witnessed traumatic or horrifying events. PTSD has been linked to increased risk of various chronic diseases and eating disorders. The gut microbiome plays a critical role in modulating the immune, metabolic, psychological and cognitive activities of the host. Understanding PTSD’s long-term associations on dietary pattern and gut microbiome may improve the physical and mental health of people with PTSD, but remains unexplored. Here we analyzed information on trauma exposure and PTSD symptoms with microbiome data and dietary information collected about 5 years later, in 191 individuals enrolled in the Mind-Body Study (MBS). We found that inter-individual differences in gut microbiome appear to be stable over time intervals as long as six months, and thus a limited number of measurements may be adequate to reliably investigate associations with long-term health. Notably, we demonstrated that PTSD has a long-term inverse association with host dietary habits, especially a healthy Mediterranean-style dietary pattern. Moreover, three (i.e., Bacteroides ovatus, Roseburia inulinivorans, and Dorea longicatena) and four (i.e., Eubacterium siraeum, Bacteroides massiliensis, Ruminococcus gnavus, and Oscillibacter unclassified) differentially abundant species were identified in No-trauma vs. Trauma-no-PTSD and Trauma-no-PTSD vs. PTSD comparisons, respectively. Overall, these findings suggest that PTSD is associated with long-term changes in dietary pattern and gut microbiome, highlighting the critical importance of incorporating the human gut microbiome and diet in our understanding of PTSD and their association with physical health.
Keywords: Posttraumatic stress disorder, gut microbiome, Mediterranean diet