Trisha Pasricha
Trisha Pasricha is a physician-scientist, gastroenterologist and neurogastroenterologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, director of the Institute for Gut-Brain Research, Washington Post “Ask a Doctor” columnist, and author of “You’ve Been Pooping All Wrong.”
Gut-Brain Research Is Recasting Parkinson’s, GLP-1s, and Microbiome Care
At an Aspen Ideas: Health live recording of Science Friday, gastroenterologists Trisha Pasricha and Emeran Mayer argued that the gut-brain connection is not a wellness slogan or a simple two-way pipe between organs. They described a broader brain-gut-microbiome system in which the enteric nervous system, vagus nerve, microbes, immune signaling, hormones, diet and stress interact — a model they said is reshaping how clinicians think about Parkinson’s disease, GLP-1 drugs, mental health, probiotics and early-life development.
Gut-Brain Signaling Is Reshaping Models of Parkinson’s and Chronic Disease
Gastroenterologist Trisha Pasricha and brain-gut researcher Emeran Mayer argue that the gut should be understood as an active nervous, hormonal, microbial, and immune system in continuous communication with the brain, not as digestive plumbing. In a live Science Friday discussion at Aspen Ideas: Health, they make the case that this bidirectional system may reshape how clinicians think about Parkinson’s disease, GLP-1 drugs, diet, mental health, and early-life development, while warning that much of the consumer “gut health” market has moved faster than the evidence.
Bowel Habits Are a Daily Signal of Gut and Nervous-System Health
Gastroenterologist Trish Pasricha argues that bowel habits are a meaningful health signal, not a taboo subject or a once-a-day performance target. In a conversation with John Torres based on her book, You’ve Been Pooping All Wrong, she makes the case that people should know their own baseline, pay attention to changes, and treat stool form, effort, timing, diet, posture, and pelvic-floor mechanics as clinically relevant rather than embarrassing.