Abstract:

Although a lot has been published on nutritional interventions for cognitive performance, little is known about its short-term effects on learning under stressful conditions among healthy adults. Especially in a military context, cognitive flexibility under extreme conditions and the ability to quickly learn and apply relevant information can prove vital to the wellbeing and survival of both the individual and those around them. However, in civilian life, especially that of students at university, deadlines, exams, and term papers can yield their fair share of stress, which may impair learning performance.

This paper examines how different macro-nutrients affect cognition and learning in a cohort of healthy adults. Students (n = 50) at the Czech University of Defence are starved for 24 hours to deplete their glycogen stores and subsequently offered a small meal (standardised calorie count), which is either carbohydrate or protein/fat heavy. Approximately 10 minutes after the meal, participants are requested to learn a list of items and perform a cognitively demanding test, followed by a test to ascertain retention of previously learned items. Although we expect a significant difference between the two groups, the effect’s direction is now unclear. These results may, in future, lead to the development of feeding protocols, which are specifically designed for the enhancement of cognitive performance under highly stressful conditions.

Keywords:

Nutritional interventions, cognitive performance, stress, starvation, efficiency.