Interventions that improve mood can reduce levels of inflammation in people with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), according to a review published online Jan. 24 in eBioMedicine.
Natasha Seaton, from King’s College London, and colleagues conducted a systematic literature review and meta-analysis to determine whether interventions targeting mood outcomes (e.g., depression, anxiety, and stress) impact inflammation levels in IBD.
Based on 28 randomized controlled trials (1,789 participants), the researchers found that interventions demonstrated small, statistically significant effects on biomarkers (−0.35) and medium effects on mood outcomes (−0.50). There was no evidence of substantive heterogeneity or publication bias. Interventions had small effects for improved fecal calprotectin (−0.19) and C-reactive protein (−0.29). Compared with exercise or antidepressants, effect sizes were larger for psychological therapy interventions and when there was an effect (standardized mean differences ≥0.2) on mood.
“This adds to the growing body of research demonstrating the role of inflammation in mental health and suggests that interventions working to improve mood could also have direct physical effects on levels of inflammation,” coauthor Valeria Mondelli, also from King’s College, said in a statement.
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