A dual pathway intervention of tES and FMT enhances emotion regulation in stressed military personnel
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: This review explores novel strategies for enhancing emotion regulation in military personal under stress, based on the interaction mechanisms of the microbiota-brain-gut axis. Military stress often triggers emotional fluctuations, cognitive decline, and physiological dysregulation, significantly impairing both mental health and combat performance. Existing research has primarily focused on psychological remediation, with insufficient attention paid to physiological mechanisms-particularly brain-gut interactions in emotion regulation. This paper proposes a dual-mode intervention strategy combining "top-down" and "bottom-up" approaches. On one hand, non-invasive neuromodulation techniques such as transcranial electrical stimulation (tES) are used to precisely regulate emotion-related brain regions, enabling immediate mitigation of negative emotions. On the other hand, fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) is employed to restore gut microbial balance, thereby modulating neurotransmitter production and central nervous function via the gut-brain axis to enhance long-term emotional stability. Ultimately, we propose an integrated intervention combining tES and FMT, which addresses both acute emotional control and sustained regulation. This approach offers a promising theoretical and practical framework for enhancing emotion regulation, safeguarding psychological health, and maintaining combat effectiveness in high-stress military environments.
Source: Discover Mental Health
Authors: Cheng Cheng, Yushan Li, Wenhao Lv, Jin Zhao, Yan Zhang, Hongliang Lu
Institutions: Air Force Medical University, Xijing Hospital
Language: English
Subfield: Neurology
Field: Neuroscience
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $1,490
OpenAlex ID: W7126233600