We have all heard the phrase ‘I have a gut feeling’ or ‘gut-wrenching’ experience and other variations of gut and our feelings. However, are they just phrases or do they hold some truth to them. There have been many studies that show how your mental health affects your gut and vice versa.

People have expressed how when they are scared or angry or anxious they often experience an upset stomach with other people also experiencing some sort of sudden reaction with heightened feelings whether it is a lurch or a sudden ‘drop’.

So, if these things affect your gut, then can helping your gut make you feel better? A new study shows that a happy gut could mean a happy you.

A recent study published in the npj Mental Health Research found that people who took probiotic supplements, which contain live microorganisms, reported feeling better emotionally over a month. Interestingly, these probiotics didn't seem to change people's overall mood as measured by standard psychological questionnaires.

The study explained that "negative feelings" can mean different things to different people. She believes this finding is significant because it suggests probiotics might help with whatever an individual interprets as a negative emotion, whether it's anxiety, sadness, or tiredness.

What Are Probiotics?

The types of microbes that thrive in our gut are largely determined by the food we eat and what those microbes do because of this, companies and researchers have developed probiotic supplements containing specific strains of live microorganisms. The goal is to see if these supplements can improve health. Probiotics, usually sold in capsules or pills, are defined as live microorganisms that provide a health benefit when consumed in adequate amounts. These beneficial microbes are also naturally present in some fermented foods like yogurt.

How Do Probiotics Directly Affect Your Mood?

The study involved 88 healthy individuals. For one month, half of the participants took a daily probiotic supplement, while the other half took a placebo (a dummy pill with no active ingredients). The probiotic used was a mix of nine different bacteria strains found in the Ecologic Barrier mixture from a Dutch company. Participants mixed a sachet of these bacteria with lukewarm water each day.

At the beginning and end of the study, everyone completed ten different questionnaires about their emotions and how they processed them, as well as one about any bowel issues. Participants also rated how positive or negative they felt each day on a scale and provided stool samples.

The results showed that both the placebo group and the probiotic group:

• Scored similarly on the mood questionnaires.
• Reported similar levels of good mood each day.

However, the group that took probiotics said their negative mood went down after just two weeks. This difference between daily feelings and the questionnaires suggests we might need better ways to measure mood changes.

How the Gut And Brain is Connected?

Harvard Health Publishing explains that our gut and our brain are closely linked, so much so that how we feel emotionally can directly affect our stomach and intestines, and problems in our gut can also send signals to our brain, influencing our mood. Think about how stress can give you "butterflies" or how worry can make you feel sick to your stomach – these common feelings show this strong connection because of this, when our gut is upset for no clear physical reason, it's important to consider how our stress and emotions might be playing a role, as our mental state can actually change how our digestive system works and how sensitive we are to pain in our gut.

In a historic first for modern medicine, surgeons in the United States have successfully performed the world’s first bladder transplant in a living human. Announced on Sunday, the groundbreaking procedure was carried out by a joint team from Keck Medicine of the University of Southern California (USC) and UCLA Health at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center.

A Major Leap in Transplant Surgery

Leading this pioneering operation were Dr. Inderbir Gill, founding executive director of USC Urology, and Dr. Nima Nassiri, director of the UCLA Vascularized Composite Bladder Allograft Transplant Programme. The duo and their multidisciplinary team performed the complex surgery, marking a significant advancement in the treatment of patients with non-functional or severely damaged bladders.

“This surgery marks a historic moment in medicine and could revolutionize the treatment of patients with ‘terminal’ bladders that no longer function,” said Dr. Gill. “Transplantation is already lifesaving for many organs, and now the bladder can join that list.”

The Patient’s Journey

The recipient of the transplant was a man who had endured multiple serious health setbacks. More than five years ago, he underwent major cancer surgery that resulted in the loss of most of his bladder. Subsequently, both of his kidneys were removed due to renal cancer, leaving him dialysis-dependent for the past seven years.

“For carefully selected patients, this offers a promising new option,” Dr. Nassiri explained. “This first attempt at bladder transplantation was over four years in the making.”

How the Surgery Was Done

The innovative procedure involved transplanting both a kidney and a bladder from a deceased donor. Surgeons first implanted the kidney, followed by the bladder. In a final step, they connected the newly transplanted kidney to the new bladder to allow the system to function as a unit. The surgery lasted around eight hours.

The results were immediate and remarkable.

“The kidney started producing a large volume of urine right away, and the patient’s kidney function improved immediately,” said Dr. Nassiri. “There was no need for further dialysis, and the urine drained properly into the new bladder.”

What This Means for the Future

Bladder transplants have long been considered a distant possibility due to the organ’s complex structure and function. This successful case could pave the way for new treatment options for people with bladder failure, particularly those whose condition does not respond to conventional therapies.

Despite the complexity of the procedure, the patient is reportedly recovering well and showing positive signs of improvement. The success of this operation could lead to wider adoption in the future and clinical trials for selected patients.

“This is a big step forward,” said Dr. Gill. “We are hopeful that this opens a new chapter in organ transplantation and urological care.”

Children in Great Britain with serious mental health conditions are two-thirds more likely to have a limited ability to work in adulthood, according to research from a leading think tank. The report by researchers at the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) looked at data from about 6,000 people who took part in the 1970 British Cohort Study, which is following the lives of individuals born in a single week in 1970 across Great Britain.

The analysis found that people who had severe mental and behavioural issues as a child were 85% more likely to have symptoms of depression at the age of 51, and 68% more likely to have a long-term condition that affects their ability to work. Children with a physical health problem were 38% more likely to have limited capacity for work in later life, according to the analysis.

The government has pledged to “raise the healthiest generation of children in our history”. Labour has committed to introducing a targeted national dental hygiene programme, cutting paediatric waiting times with 2m more operations, and setting a 9pm watershed for junk food advertising.

The IPPR recommended the government safeguard spending on children and preventive spending in the NHS and other public services, and expand the role of the children’s commissioner.

In January, the Guardian reported that the number of children referred to emergency mental healthcare in England had risen by 10% in a year, with lengthy waiting lists for regular NHS care pushing more to crisis point.

Previous research by the IPPR estimated that the hidden cost of rising workplace sickness in the UK had passed £100bn a year, with employees now losing the equivalent of 44 days of productivity because of working through sickness, up from 35 days in 2018.

Amy Gandon, an associate fellow at the thinktank and a former senior government official on children’s health, said: “Successive governments have failed to face up to the long-term consequences of poor child health. If this government is serious about building a preventative state, it must act decisively to improve the prospects of our children and young people.

“What’s more, the dividends from doing so need not be decades away; the right action now, for example, for those joining the workforce within a few years, can deliver better health, opportunity and growth within this parliament.”

Dr Jamie O’Halloran, a senior research fellow at the IPPR, said: “The earlier we address both physical and mental health challenges for children, the more likely we can prevent costly health conditions and worklessness later in life. This is not just a matter of improving individual lives, but also of alleviating long-term pressures on the state.”

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “As this report demonstrates, prevention is better than cure. That’s why this week, we expanded access to mental health teams in schools to almost an extra million children.

"We are investing an extra £680 million for mental health services, recruiting 8,500 extra mental health workers, and delivering an extra 345,000 talking therapies. Through our Plan for Change, we will tackle the mental health crisis and give every child a healthy start to life."

Reyna Savage was the picture of health. At 34, the Michigan-based mom of two was active, super-fit, and had never smoked a single cigarette in her life. But in a twist that has shocked her and stunned thousands of followers online, she’s now living with an incurable form of stage four lung cancer, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) a diagnosis that came after she dismissed persistent shoulder pain as just another workout strain.

Her story is not only a sobering reminder that lung cancer isn’t exclusive to smokers but also a powerful example of how early signs of serious illness can be insidiously subtle.

“I thought I had just pulled something in the gym,” Reyna shared in an Instagram video that has since gone viral. “It started out as shoulder pain, just this achy feeling, and then it started to spread toward my neck.”

Initially, there were no alarming symptoms like coughing up blood or dramatic shortness of breath. What she did experience was a dull shoulder ache, a popping sound every time she moved her arm, and eventually, a pain so severe she couldn’t sleep on her right side. The ache crept around her body from her back to her chest without the classic signs of lung distress.

In retrospect, Reyna admits there was one subtle red flag: “It felt like my body was gasping for air—just for a split second.” But with so many other physical symptoms to blame, even this moment was rationalized as a side effect of poor posture or shallow breathing from pain.

In April 2023, after several visits to the doctor and persistent symptoms, she received the diagnosis no one expects—stage four non-small cell lung cancer. The disease had already spread to her bones, kidneys, and lymph nodes.

The odds at this stage are devastating. Fewer than 10 percent of patients with stage four lung cancer survive beyond five years. And yet, Reyna’s determination and early response to treatment have offered some hope. After undergoing chemotherapy and targeted anti-cancer therapy, recent scans show that her cancer is currently undetectable—though still considered incurable.

Reyna’s story aligns with a growing and disturbing trend. In a groundbreaking global study published earlier this year, researchers found that non-smokers now represent a growing share of lung cancer diagnoses. Particularly in cases like Reyna’s—adenocarcinoma, a subtype of NSCLC—patients often have no history of tobacco use.

Scientists from France and China attributed a significant portion of these cases—possibly up to a third of the 600,000 global adenocarcinoma cases annually—to environmental factors such as air pollution. Alarmingly, data from the World Health Organization shows that 99% of the global population lives in areas where air quality fails to meet safe standards.

The study also found that women are disproportionately affected by non-smoking lung cancer—a detail that underscores how this disease can quietly and systemically discriminate, even in the absence of traditional risk factors.

Misconceptions and Missed Diagnoses of Lung Cancer

Lung cancer continues to be unfairly stereotyped as a smoker’s disease. Because of that, many non-smoking individuals—especially young and healthy ones—may delay seeking medical attention or be misdiagnosed. Reyna's experience echoes the medical blind spots that still exist in primary care: if you're young, fit, and have no risk factors, cancer often isn’t the first suspicion.

But early symptoms of lung cancer are frequently vague and easy to dismiss. A shoulder ache. A change in breathing. Chest tightness. These signs can often mimic orthopedic or even anxiety-related conditions.

“Had I not kept pushing and listening to my body, it could have been too late,” Reyna said in one of her social media updates. Her transparency has led to an outpouring of support and heightened awareness, especially among women who otherwise wouldn’t associate their symptoms with a disease like lung cancer.

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths globally. While smoking still accounts for around 70 percent of all cases, experts stress that other risk factors—such as prolonged exposure to radon gas, environmental pollutants, family history, and even certain infections—can all contribute to the disease's onset in non-smokers.

Non-small cell lung cancer, which accounts for over 87% of lung cancer cases, can remain asymptomatic until advanced stages. When symptoms do appear, they often include persistent coughs, back or chest pain, unexplained weight loss, and fatigue—many of which can be brushed off or confused with more benign ailments.

If You Don’t Smoke What Are The Signs of Lung Cancer

Reyna’s case is an urgent wake-up call. If you're young, active, and not a smoker, it’s easy to assume you’re safe from something as serious as lung cancer. But as the statistics and Reyna’s harrowing experience show, that couldn’t be further from the truth.

In an era of rising pollution, changing cancer patterns, and delayed diagnoses, being proactive about vague or persistent symptoms could be life-saving. Ask the questions. Get the scans. Trust your body’s signals.

“I didn’t fit the profile,” Reyna says. “But cancer doesn’t care about profiles.” Her journey continues—one filled with courage, education, and the hope that her story will encourage others to take their health seriously, regardless of their lifestyle.