According to a new study, Mycobacterium vaccae, a natural bacterium that is found in soil helps in increasing the brain's feel good chemical.

The same was discovered when an experiment was carried out on animals. The researchers claim that the same boost in mental sharpness could be experienced in humans who spent a lot of time out in the open.

According to the research team at the Sage Colleges in Troy, New York the bacteria can also work as an antidepressant since it enhances the serotonin chemical of the brain. The chemical is usually associated with the feel good factor of the being.

The researchers fed the live bacteria to mice and then the mice were placed in a maze.

Further, the performance of the bacteria fed mice was compared with a control group of mice that were fed an ordinary diet.

According to Dr. Dorothy Matthews, who had led the study,"We found that mice that were fed live M. vaccae navigated the maze twice as fast and with less demonstrated anxiety behaviors as control mice".

It was noted that the mice that were fed the ordinary diet, ran the maze more slowly.

In the concluding stages of the study, the mice were tested after being fed for three weeks on microbes. It was observed that the mice continued to traverse faster than the mice fed which were fed the ordinary-diet.