A metabolic measure of mental effort

Fairclough, Stephen H.; Houston, Kim

doi:10.1016/j.biopsycho.2003.10.001

Cited by 223 publications

(197 citation statements)

References 52 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

175

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…This phenomenon raises the possibility that glucose administration increases the localised availability of brain glucose during conditions of increased hippocampal demand, during which hippocampal glucose levels may otherwise become depleted. Note that this neurophysiological observation in rodents is in line with the previously described phenomenon that systemic plasma glucose levels are more rapidly depleted during tasks associated with relatively higher cognitive demand in humans (Donohoe and Benton, 1999b;Fairclough and Houston, 2004;Scholey et al, 2001;Scholey et al, 2006).…”

Section: Brain Glucose Availabilitysupporting

confidence: 90%

“…It has been suggested that the performance of more cognitively demanding tasks is associated with greater depletion of circulating glucose, and therefore the provision of additional glucose is useful in 'topping-up' the supply of glucose to the brain . This proposal has been predicated upon several studies in which the level of circulating glucose has been observed to fall more markedly after the performance of tasks involving relatively greater cognitive demand (Donohoe and Benton, 1999b;Fairclough and Houston, 2004;Scholey et al, 2001;Scholey et al, 2006), and is related to the concept that the brain utilises a considerable amount of energy for its relative size, while having a low capacity for glucose storage (Peters et al, 2004). The human brain is uniquely large among primates, and extensive evolutionary changes have been required in a relatively short period of time to ensure that the human body is able to provide adequate energy to fuel such a metabolically demanding organ (e.g.…”

Section: Cognitive Demandmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Glucose enhancement of human memory: A comprehensive research review of the glucose memory facilitation effect

Smith

Riby

Eekelen

et al. 2011

Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews

130

123

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The brain relies upon glucose as its primary fuel. In recent years, a rich literature has developed from both human and animal studies indicating that increases in circulating blood glucose can facilitate cognitive functioning. This phenomenon has been termed the 'glucose memory facilitation effect'. The purpose of this review is to discuss a number of salient studies which have investigated the influence of glucose ingestion on neurocognitive performance in individuals with a) compromised neurocognitive capacity, as well as b) normally functioning individuals (with a focus on research conducted with human participants). The proposed neurocognitive mechanisms purported to underlie the modulatory effect of glucose on neurocognitive performance will also be considered. Many theories have focussed upon the hippocampus, given that this brain region is heavily implicated in learning and memory. Further, it will be suggested that glucose is a possible mechanism underlying the phenomenon that enhanced memory performance is typically observed for emotionally laden stimuli.

show abstract

Section: Brain Glucose Availabilitysupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Cognitive Demandmentioning

confidence: 99%

Glucose enhancement of human memory: A comprehensive research review of the glucose memory facilitation effect

Smith

Riby

Eekelen

et al. 2011

Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews

130

123

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Obiektywne wskaźniki pobudzenia fizjologicznego pokrywają się ze wskaź-nikami wysiłku poznawczego i konstrukty te bywają stosowane wymiennie, co utrudnia ich rozgraniczenie (Fairclough, Houston, 2004). Istnieje jednak możli-wość analizy subiektywnie odczuwanego pobudzenia fizjologicznego, przybliża-jąc ten wskaźnik do subiektywnie odczuwanego stresu (Revelle, Loftus, 2014).…”

Section: Pobudzenie Fizjologiczne I Wysiłek Poznawczyunclassified

“…mental stress (Boyle i in., 2014), choć można się spotkać także z mental effort (Howells, Stein, Russell, 2010), cognitive stress (Leistad i in., 2007) czy wreszcie cognitive effort (Ansari, Derakshan, 2011). Wśród testów wykonywanych w tego rodzaju badaniach najczęściej stosowano Test Stroopa (Fairclough, Houston, 2004;Okamura i in., 2010;Schommer, Hellhammer, Kirschbaum, 2003), uważany za szczególnie skuteczne narzędzie wywołujące aktywność układu współczulnego (Hjemdahl i in., 1983). Konflikt słowo-kolor jest wówczas traktowany jako stresor.…”

Section: Dyskusjaunclassified

“…Stężenie dopaminy lekko wzrosło tylko na pierwszym spotkaniu. Te wyniki są charakterystyczne w przypadku adrenaliny, której poziom rośnie zarówno po wysiłku poznawczym (Wilkinson i in., 1998), jak i fizycznym (Schwab, Heubel, Bartels, 1992), co może być interpretowane jako odzwierciedlenie wzrostu zapotrzebowania energetycznego organizmu w obliczu zadania (Fairclough, Houston 2004). Nie było podstaw, aby spodziewać się wzrostu poziomu dopaminy i rzeczywiście jest on niewielki.…”

Section: Dyskusjaunclassified

See 1 more Smart Citation

Poziom katecholamin w ślinie podczas stresu egzaminacyjnego i wysiłku poznawczego

Rudnicki¹,

Rutkowska²,

Wieczorek³

2015

FoliaPsych

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstrakt. By ustalić przydatność katecholamin w ślinie do badania stresu, pobrano próbki od 30 studentów przed egzaminem oraz w dniu pozbawionym stresorów. Następnie aby zbadać wpływ wysiłku poznawczego na poziomy katecholamin, przebadano 31 ochotników, którzy uczestniczyli w dwóch spotkaniach poświęconych realizacji różnych testów poznawczych. Za pomocą HPLC-ED zmierzono poziomy noradrenaliny, dopaminy i adrenaliny w ślinie. W grupie przed egzaminem zaobserwowano wyłącznie obniżony poziom dopaminy w porównaniu do dnia nieobciążonego stresorami. W drugiej grupie wysiłek poznawczy wywołał podwyższenie poziomów wszystkich trzech katecholamin. Zważywszy na niejednoznaczne wyniki z dotychczasowych badań wydaje się, iż adrenalina i noradrenalina w ślinie mogą być stosowane jako markery aktywności współczulnej w badaniach psychologicznych.

show abstract

Sweetened blood cools hot tempers: physiological self-control and aggression

et al. 2010

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Aggressive and violent behaviors are restrained by self-control. Self-control consumes a lot of glucose in the brain, suggesting that low glucose and poor glucose metabolism are linked to aggression and violence. Four studies tested this hypothesis. Study 1 found that participants who consumed a glucose beverage behaved less aggressively than did participants who consumed a placebo beverage. Study 2 found an indirect relationship between diabetes (a disorder marked by low glucose levels and poor glucose metabolism) and aggressiveness through low self-control. Study 3 found that states with high diabetes rates also had high violent crime rates. Study 4 found that countries with high rates of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency (a metabolic disorder related to low glucose levels) also had higher killings rates, both war related and non-war related. All four studies suggest that a spoonful of sugar helps aggressive and violent behaviors go down.

show abstract

A metabolic measure of mental effort

Cited by 223 publications

References 52 publications

Glucose enhancement of human memory: A comprehensive research review of the glucose memory facilitation effect

Glucose enhancement of human memory: A comprehensive research review of the glucose memory facilitation effect

Poziom katecholamin w ślinie podczas stresu egzaminacyjnego i wysiłku poznawczego

Sweetened blood cools hot tempers: physiological self-control and aggression

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About