New King's College London research reveals that interventions that improve mood can reduce levels of inflammation in people with inflammatory bowel disease by 18%, compared to having no mood intervention.

Researchers at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience at King's College London found that interventions designed to improve mood, including psychological therapy, antidepressants, and exercise, were associated with significant reductions in inflammatory biomarker levels in individuals with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Interventions for mood may present an alternative treatment for IBD that is both effective and low-cost.

The research indicates that interventions for mood can present an alternative treatment for IBD that is both effective and low-cost.

IBD, comprising Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, is a chronic autoimmune condition affecting more than 500,000 people in the U.K. that causes inflammation of the digestive tract. This results in abdominal pain, diarrhea, fatigue, incontinence, and other debilitating symptoms. Alongside the physical symptoms, IBD can have major implications on mental health and well-being.

Inflammatory biomarkers can be found in the body to indicate areas and types of inflammation. Researchers analyzed existing studies on levels of the biomarkers C-Reactive Protein and fecal calprotectin which are specific indicators of IBD, as well as a combined measure of other inflammatory biomarkers.

The systematic review and meta-analysis published in eBiomedicine is the first to investigate the relationship between interventions aiming to treat mood and levels of inflammatory biomarkers in IBD. The findings suggest that interventions for mood present a strategy to improve mental health and reduce inflammation in IBD.

Natasha Seaton, first author of the study and Ph.D. student at King's IoPPN, said, "IBD is a distressing condition and current medication that reduces inflammation is expensive and can have side effects. Our study showed that interventions that treat mental health reduce levels of inflammation in the body. This indicates that mood interventions could be a valuable tool in our approach to help those with IBD."

The researchers conducted a search of more than 15,000 articles, looking for all randomized controlled trials in adults with IBD that measured levels of inflammatory biomarkers and tested a mood intervention (for example, interventions to reduce depression, anxiety, stress and distress, or improve emotional well-being).

They reviewed and analyzed data from 28 randomized controlled trials involving more than 1,700 participants to establish whether interventions targeting mood outcomes impact inflammation levels in IBD.

Researchers found that psychological therapies, including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, and Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction, had the best outcomes on inflammation in IBD, compared with antidepressants and exercise interventions.