BrainStorm Documentary
A New Documentary About the Bipolar Spectrum to End Stigma, Save Lives, and Maximize Healing BrainStorm follows six compelling people living with bipolar in their journey from devastation to recovery. The film connects their experiences with the latest bipolar brain science to shed light on potential causes and successful treatments.
Designer $hit Documentary
Fecal Microbiota Transplant (FMT) is the act of taking stool from a healthy donor and implanting it into the gut of a sick individual. In Designer $hit, Director Saffron Cassaday, who has suffered from ulcerative colitis for nearly a decade, sets off on a journey to determine if this form of treatment could potentially cure […]
EP17: Dr. Valerie Taylor Confronts the Meaning of ”Sh*t for Brains” – Confronting The Madness Podcast
By Confronting The Madness Published Sep 18, 2021 In this episode I had the great pleasure of speaking with Dr. Valerie Taylor. Originally hailing from Newfoundland, Valerie is now the Calgary Zone Lead for Addiction and Mental Health with Alberta Health Services as well as the Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at the University of […]
Why the Future of Mental Health Care Could Be in Your Gut – WSJ Bold Names Podcast
By WSJ’s Bold Names Published FEBRUARY 17, 2023 A growing body of research suggests that the gut microbiome, the bacteria and other organisms that live in the gut, is linked to our mental health. But what if doctors could act on that information to treat mental illness by changing the gut microbiome? WSJ’s Alex Ossola talks […]
A scientist who studies the link between our gut and brain shared 3 diet tweaks that could improve your mental health
By Serafina Kenny Published Feb 17, 2025 A professor of psychiatry shared three ways caring for our gut health could improve our mental health. Valerie Taylor, who is based at the University of Calgary, studies the relationship between the gut microbiome — the trillions of microorganisms in the digestive system — and the brain. The gut microbiome is a rapidly growing […]
Why nurturing the gut microbiota could resolve depression and anxiety
By Simon Makin Published 18 August 2025 Andrew Moseson experienced severe depression for many years. “Some days I wasn’t able to get out bed. I had long periods of unemployment and was living in my car for a time.” He struggled to find relief, nothing worked. “I tried medications, exercise, volunteering, psychedelics. I read books about […]
Hold the Prozac and pass the poop pills? Fecal transplant studies dig deep
By David Bell Published Oct 10, 2019 A Calgary psychiatry professor and department head is leading one of two Canadian studies looking at potential benefits of, well, No. 2. “You have more serotonin receptors in your gastrointestinal system than in your brain,” Dr. Valerie Taylor told The Homestretch. “We have assumed it’s a brain illness because that’s […]
Poo power: Calgary study explores link between gut bacteria, fecal supplements and mental health
By Kevin Green Published August 13, 2024 Could the answer to overcoming serious depression be found in a pill made from poop? A research team from the University of Calgary’s Cumming School of Medicine (CSM) is launching a study to investigate the potential link between gut bacteria and depression, and whether downing a supplement of fecal matter could […]
Could poop pills improve your mental health? Alberta studies aim to find out
By Caley Gibson Published August 13, 2024 Could taking poop pills help improve the health of those suffering from certain mental health disorders? The University of Calgary’s Cumming School of Medicine is currently recruiting for two studies to find out whether fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) can reduce symptoms of major depression disorder (MDD) and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). FMT is a medical procedure where a […]
The rise of ‘psychobiotics’? ‘Poop pills’ and probiotics could be game changers for mental illness
By Sharon Kirkey Published Oct 08, 2019 No area of psychiatry is as hot, or controversial today as the idea of manipulating the gut to alter the mind The calls started pouring in soon after word spread that Dr. Valerie Taylor was testing fecal microbiota transplantation — transferring poop from one body to another — for […]
