352 - Common Drugs Can Rewire Your Gut For Several Years, Study Finds
Science Alert By Tessa Koumoundouros 02 November 2025
https://www.sciencealert.com/common-drugs-can-rewire-your-gut-for-several-years-study-finds"The effects of antibiotics, psycholeptics, antidepressants, proton pump inhibitors, and beta-blockers are detectable several years after use."
Aasmets and his team investigated the records of 2,509 people who participated in the Estonian Biobank project.
Amongst the data, including a subset of 328 follow-ups, the researchers could see how stopping and starting certain medications shifted patients' microbiomes. Out of the 186 drugs the team investigated, 167 (almost 90 percent) were associated with changes in fecal microbiome samples.
Benzodiazepines, commonly used for anxiety, had an impact equivalent to broad-spectrum antibiotics, well known to be destructive to our inner ecosystems.
These impacts can also compound. "The more a medication is used, the stronger the impact on the microbiome," the researchers write. "We identified carryover and additive effects."
Curt - Even within the same class of drugs some brands are worse than others
