Reviews

“If I was a movie producer at a Hollywood film studio, I would have already optioned the rights to make the film of The Psychobiotic Revolution.

“The Psychobiotic Revolution is basically a thrill-ride, a roller coaster of a narrative with all the Good Guys versus Bad Guys you could hope for in an action flick. This is a story with jumping genes. It has shape-shifting foes and more promiscuity than you can shake a stick at. There is germ warfare and there are natural killer genes. Natural killer genes? Get Tarantino on the phone, now!

“And you want psychological horror in this story? No problem. Just consider the chilling moment when the authors reveal exactly what is going on: “You are not alone in your body . . .” So, think Ready Player One meets The Exorcist, but with a cast of . . . well, trillions. Because, here’s the thing: all this action, this mayhem, this turmoil and tension, this 100 years war for the ages, is all taking place inside your gut.

“It is the story of your microbiota, the brain in your belly. “You can change the composition of your gut overnight, just by eating different foods,” they promise and then set out ways that will help your gut-brain axis back to wellness.

“Aside from its edge-of-the-seat narrative, The Psychobiotic Revolution provides concrete evidence and examples of how correcting eating habits also resets mood and mental health. Changing your food narrative offers a win-win: you feel better physically and mentally.

“Change your food. Change your mood.”

–John McKenna for The Irish Times


“The latest book on the microbiome and the brain is also the best. The Psychobiotic Revolution takes you from the early years of probiotic science to today’s cutting edge…

“Fortunately, Scott C. Anderson teamed up with the two premier researchers on the brain and microbiome, John Cryan, PhD and Ted Dinan MD, PhD to write a book for the layperson, The Psychobiotic Revolution. Mr. Anderson has managed to explain some particularly difficult science … with a compelling flair and real narrative drive.

“In short, if you want a friendly, interesting, and up-to-date read on the science of the microbiome and the brain, you cannot do better than The Psychobiotic Revolution. “

Emily Deans, Psychology Today


“Although decidedly aimed at the lay reader, the tone throughout is very humorous; I found myself swiftly turning pages, excitedly anticipating the next witty joke. Overall, this is a great book that encourages you to ‘take charge of your gut to optimize your mind and your mood’. This is a book that you would reluctantly lend to friends, in the fear that they might not return it.”

—The Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology


“This authoritative yet engaging book provides up-to-the minute research and practical advice on the gut-brain axis, perhaps the most exciting area of science today. Written by some of the leaders in the field, it gives terrific insight into what is going on in the gut, how to change it to improve mood, and the largely unappreciated links between mental health and the many other diseases now linked to the gut microbiome.”

—Rob Knight, Director of the Center for Microbiome Innovation, University of California at San Diego, author of Follow Your Gut and coauthor of Dirt is Good


“Anderson, Cryan and Dinan have infused life into cutting edge research that is often still mired in the scientific language…. The authors take on a near impossible task, to translate 150 years of research into the infinite complexity of human behavior and make it digestible. Compelling, engaging and informative, this book teaches us why microbes may affect all of our decisions…. This is brain food!”

Jack Gilbert, professor of surgery, University of Chicago, and coauthor of Dirt Is Good


“Cryan and Dinan are at the forefront of scientific inquiry into the connection between our brains and our gut bacteria. We have been fans of their work for years and are delighted that they have translated their ground-breaking discoveries for the everyday reader…. No pseudoscience or exaggerated claims here, just solid scientific information that can benefit us all.”

Justin and Erica Sonnenberg, professors of microbiology, Stanford University, and authors of The Good Gut


“Offering microbial-based solutions for the most pressing mental and physical issues, this book is a must-read. Brilliant, insightful, and highly readable.”

Rodney Dietert, professor of immunotoxicology, Cornell University, and author of The Human Superorganism


“If you imagine your self to be a bundle of expressed genes, and accept that you can alter a significant portion of that bundle, you might just be holding the key to a fundamentally transformative experience. Once you read Anderson’s book, you will have information which you can’t really get anywhere else (unless you feel like ploughing through 400 scientific publications), information which could radically alter your life, information which could change you to such a degree that you will, with hindsight, look back and say that you were a different person before you read this book.”

Lynda Marron O’Gorman


“This is an accessible guide for a lay audience … on science that could radically alter the understanding of anxiety and depression, along with a host of other conditions.”

—Publisher’s Weekly


…The hope is that it may one day be possible to diagnose some brain diseases and mental health problems by analysing gut bacteria, and to treat them – or at least augment the effects of drug treatments – with specific bacteria. Cryan and his colleague Ted Dinan call these mood-altering germs “psychobiotics”, and have co-written a book with the American science writer Scott C Anderson called The Psychobiotic Revolution…

—The Guardian