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At least 1,621 records · Page 90Linked to original sources
PubMed2006

Nutrition and the development of cognitive functions: interpretation of behavioral studies in animals and human infants.

A rapidly accumulating body of evidence on the neural basis of cognition suggests that cognition is not a unitary function but rather depends on the functions of multiple and dissociable neural systems. The nonlinear interactions in the differing trajectories of these systems during development result in changing patterns of cognitive functions over time; they may also lead to paradoxical outcomes, for which enhancement of one function through dietary intervention may be at the expense of another. This emerging understanding has important implications for the design and interpretation of studies on the cognitive effects of specific nutrients during development. It is important that researchers move away from global tests of development and strive rather to ensure that their choice of behavioral task is based on specific hypotheses of the systems expected to be altered by a dietary manipulation and on an understanding of which behavioral tests are valid, sensitive, and reliable indicators of this disruption. Furthermore, to understand whether accelerated or delayed development related to a particular cognitive function is beneficial or problematic, it is important to study the entire behavioral profile over different time points, rather than relying on one outcome measured at one time point. It is also necessary to control for sensory or motivational differences that will affect performance on the behavioral tasks. Implementation of these methodologic recommendations may contribute to a deeper understanding of the mechanisms involved in the nutrition-associated changes in cognitive functions and thereby aid in the development of an appropriate population-based dietary policy.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Situational characteristics of safety belt use.

Past research concerning the use and nonuse of safety belts has tended to stereotype users and nonusers as distinct entities on the basis of a single observed situation. The thought processes underlying the reasons given by drivers for using or not using seat belts have not been explored. The purpose of this study was to observe belt use by a group of drivers and describe factors contributing to their use or nonuse as defined by the drivers themselves. In-depth interviews were undertaken with 239 drivers whose safety belt wearing behavior was observed in specific city or highway driving locations. Vehicle license numbers, gender, and age group of selected drivers were used to retrieve driver records and insurance policy data. Open-ended questions were asked concerning their reasons for use or nonuse and their attitudes towards safety belts and other types of traffic safety countermeasures. Driver attitudes, characteristics, and records were compared between observed safety belt user and nonuser groups to validate variables predicting use or nonuse. Respondents' descriptions of the social and personal context of their choice to use or not use safety belts provide a broader view of seat belt wearing that suggests implications for planning future enforcement and education programs.

Age Factors↗
PubMed2006

Food attitudes, eating behavior, and the information underlying food attitudes.

This research examined healthiness perceptions and how the information underlying food attitudes more generally relate to attitudes and behaviors. Participants completed attitudinal measures and various card-sorting tasks in which they rank ordered foods (pictures and/or nutrition labels) in terms of healthiness. Taste was found to be a stronger predictor of attitudes and past eating behavior than other information underlying attitudes (health, guilt, comfort). Furthermore, participants' healthiness rankings of pictures were not correlated to rankings of the corresponding nutrition labels, suggesting that when determining a food's healthiness, participants do not rely on (or are not aware of) the actual nutritional makeup.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Position of the American Dietetic Association: Dietary guidance for healthy children ages 2 to 11 years.

It is the position of the American Dietetic Association that children ages 2 to 11 years should achieve optimal physical and cognitive development, attain a healthy weight, enjoy food, and reduce the risk of chronic disease through appropriate eating habits and participation in regular physical activity. The health status of American children has generally improved over the past three decades. However, the number of children who are overweight has more than doubled among 2- to 5-year-old children and more than tripled among 6- to 11-year-old children, which has major health consequences. This increase in childhood overweight has broadened the focus of dietary guidance to address children's over consumption of energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods and beverages and physical activity patterns. Health promotion will help reduce diet-related risks of chronic degenerative diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer, obesity, and osteoporosis. This position paper reviews what US children are eating and explores trends in food and nutrient intakes as well as the impact of school meals on children's diets. Dietary recommendations and guidelines and the benefits of physical activity are also discussed. The roles of parents and caregivers in influencing the development of healthy eating behaviors are highlighted. The American Dietetic Association works with other allied health and food industry professionals to translate dietary recommendations and guidelines into achievable, healthful messages. Specific recommendations to improve the nutritional well-being of children are provided for dietetics professionals, parents, and caregivers.

Child↗
PubMed2005

Neuron activity in the anterolateral motor cortex in operant food-acquiring and alcohol-acquiring behavior.

The interactions of the neuronal mechanisms of food-acquiring behavior and newly formed operant alcohol-acquiring behavior were studied by recording the activity of individual neurons in the anterolateral area of the motor cortex in chronically alcoholized rabbits. Adult animals learned food-acquiring behavior in a cage with two feeders and two pedals, in the comers (the food in the feeders was presented after pressing the corresponding pedal). After nine months of chronic alcoholization, the same rabbits learned an alcohol-acquiring behavior in the same experimental cage (gelatin capsules filled with 15% ethanol solution were placed in the feeders instead of food). Analysis of neuron activity showed that the set of neurons involved in supporting food-acquiring and alcohol-acquiring behaviors overlapped, though not completely. These experiments not only help us understand the neuronal mechanisms of the newly formed and the previously formed behaviors, but also facilitate the development of concepts of the similarity of the neuronal mechanisms of long-term memory and long-term modifications of the nervous system, occurring in conditions of repeated intake of addictive substances.

Action Potentials↗
PubMed2006

Lipopolysaccharide and interleukin-1beta decrease sucrose intake but do not affect expression of place preference in rats.

Immune system activation has been shown to induce decreased interest in pleasurable stimuli. Studies of this phenomenon have assessed the effect of cytokines or lipopolysaccharide (LPS) on behavior maintained by primary reinforcers, stimuli, such as palatable solutions, that effectively reinforce behavior without prior training. The studies reported in this paper replicated findings of immune system activation decreasing intake of a palatable solution and assessed the effects of immune activation on behavior maintained by a conditioned reinforcer, a stimulus paired with a the palatable solution. Using a conditioned place preference procedure, the effects of LPS and interleukin-1beta (IL-1beta) on sucrose intake (primary reinforcer) and preference for a sucrose-paired environment (conditioned reinforcer) were tested. LPS and IL-1beta decreased sucrose intake but had no effect on the expression of a sucrose-induced place preference, indicating a differential effect of immune system activation on appetitive behaviors maintained by primary and conditioned reinforcers. Finally, it was shown that a sucrose-induced place preference is sensitive to the motivational state of the subjects at the time of testing; a sucrose-induced place preference was demonstrated if rats were tested when water deprived but not if tested after free access to water.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Sexual behavior of female rats in a multiple-partner preference test.

In this study, sexually experienced female rats were tested in a multiple-partner preference test (MPPT) in which they were allowed to pace their sexual contacts with four sexually active males. Four cylinders, with a small hole through which only the female could move freely from one cylinder to another, were assembled forming in the center an empty compartment. An intact female was placed in the central compartment and a sexually active male in each cylinder. Female sexual behavior was analyzed throughout the estrus cycle in four consecutive days. Each daily test lasted 15 min. The percentage of exits after intromission or ejaculation was significantly higher than the percentage of exits after each mount. The female spent significantly longer time with one of the males. We designated this male as the preferred male (PM). Although in each of the 4 days studied, females spent significantly longer time with the PM, however, the male selected was not the same throughout the estrus cycle. The number of entries into the compartment of the PM was significantly higher and increased around proestrus. Compared to previous studies, pacing behavior was notably lower in the conditions of the MPPT. No significant differences were observed during the estrous cycle concerning the other parameters recorded. The present results suggest that the MPPT could be a good model to study partner preference in the female rat.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Do you "want" to play? Distinguishing between conflicted shyness and social disinterest in early childhood.

This study attempted to distinguish two types of social withdrawal in early childhood: (a) one based on social fear and anxiety despite a desire to interact socially (conflicted shyness) and (b) one based on the lack of a strong motivation to engage in social interaction (social disinterest). Two samples of preschoolers (n = 119 and n = 127) 3-5 years of age participated. Their mothers completed the newly developed Child Social Preference Scale, which was designed to assess conflicted shyness and social disinterest. Maternal ratings of child temperament, parenting style, and social goals, teacher ratings of child social adjustment, observations of child free-play behaviors, and child interview assessments of perceived competence and preference for playing with peers were also collected. Distinct patterns of associations were found between conflicted shyness and social disinterest and outcome variables. Implications for the motivational underpinnings and adjustment outcomes of shyness and social disinterest are explored.

Anxiety↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Teenagers: fertility control behavior and attitudes before and after abortion, childbearing or negative pregnancy test.

Following abortion or delivery, teenagers' knowledge and use of effective contraception improved markedly; but those who had negative pregnancy tests continued to take risks--and to get pregnant--subsequently. Most sexually active teenagers were poorly educated on the facts of reproduction, and began to have intercourse before seeking contraception.

Abortion, Induced↗
PubMed1993

Depletion of olfactory bulb norepinephrine by 6-OHDA disrupts chemical cue but not social recognition responses in male rats.

In the present experiment, 6-OHDA was infused directly into the olfactory bulb (OB) to produce a localized neurotoxic lesion. Habituation/dishabituation behavioral tests were then conducted to measure recognition responses to chemical cues (urine as a stimulus) and to social stimuli (ovariectomized rat as a stimulus). Infusion of 6-OHDA resulted in a near complete depletion of OB-norepinephrine (NE), whereas it had little effect (15% reduction) on OB dopamine (DA) contents. Nor were any significant effects on hypothalamic, hippocampal, olfactory tubercle, and corpus striatal NE and DA contents observed. Behaviorally, dishabituation responses to chemical cues were greatly impaired, however, there was relatively little effect on social behavior dishabituation responses. These results demonstrate that 6-OHDA can be used to produce a near complete but localized depletion of OB-NE. This treatment impairs dishabituation responses to chemical cues but not social stimuli indicating that OB-NE appears necessary for processing of chemical cue, but not social memory recognition process.

Animals↗
PubMed1980

[Patterns: release and restriction. Phenomenologic analysis of the tendency to maintain drives and affects in mental patients and healthy subjects].

The following article concerns the 'maintenance' of drive and affects in normal and psychopathological cases. It will be demonstrated how the 'maintenance' of single mental though contents modifies the flux of consciousness and thus has a bearing on several cognitive functions. Another aspect of our study is pointed towards the use of patterns of behavior, which, on the one hand, can facilitate personal decisions and thus cause a widening of the individual's personal scope of freedom or, on the other hand, especially if strongly emotion-bound, can reduce the mental manoeuverability up to the point where the individual has lost his autonomy to these patterns as described above.

Affect↗
PubMed1980

Visual information and approach behavior in genetically manipulated quail chicks: preference hierarchies and interactions of flash rate, flash amplitude, luminance, and color.

Visual preferences were studied in 18,225 quail chicks (Coturnix coturnix japonica) of three genetic populations, in relation to 185 pairs of systematically varied and combined flash rates, flash amplitudes, luminances, and colors. Results indicate additive and nonadditive interactions between preference values of stimulus elements embedded in complex stimulus information. Flicker preferences changed with changes in overall stimulus liminances, flash amplitudes, and colors. Likewise, color preferences changed with the presence or absence and rate of flicker. Interactions between preference values of stimuli were related to threshold effects and genetic influences. Dominance of flicker over color preference was found in genetic controls, but subjects drawn from the 14th generation of bidirectional genetic selection for color choices preferred the genetically favored colors regardless of flicker. Discussion examines the data from the perspectives of coding and processing stimulus information.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Healthscapes: the role of the facility and physical environment on consumer attitudes, satisfaction, quality assessments, and behaviors.

The role of the health care physical or tangible environment, including the facility, is essentially an unstudied area. This article identifies and defines components of "atmospherics" concerning health care (Healthscapes), to assess their strengths and predictiveness in the relationship between patient and other customer outcomes, satisfaction, quality assessments, intention to return, and willingness to recommend a health care provider to others and to propose much needed research in the area.

Choice Behavior↗
PubMed1996

Self-control and the Type A behavior pattern.

A laboratory experiment was conducted to investigate self-control features of the Type A behavior pattern. The results indicated that the Type A subjects, high on the speed/impatient factor, had more difficulty in waiting for the larger delayed reward than non-Type As and chose the small reward available immediately. The results are discussed in terms of a conceptualization of Type As' poor self-control skills.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

Affective bias and response modulation following tyrosine depletion in healthy adults.

Acute phenylalanine/tyrosine depletion (ATPD) has been used to transiently lower central nervous system dopamine activity in animals and humans. Findings suggest that ATPD may impact dopamine transmission in limbic and striatal regions. Impact on cognitive functions has varied across studies, although several recent reports suggest that affective processing in the context of a go/no-go response control task may be impaired during ATPD. In this study, response control under affective vs nonaffective conditions was examined in healthy individuals who underwent either ATPD or a balanced condition in a between-subjects design. Effects of ATPD were validated through its effects on serum prolactin secretion. ATPD resulted in significantly increased prolactin levels relative to the balanced mixture. Although there were no differences in self-reported mood between the groups, individuals in the ATPD condition demonstrated diminished sensitivity to positively valenced words and seemingly enhanced sensitivity to negatively valenced words in an affective go/no-go task. They also showed difficulties in modulating ongoing behavior in a nonaffective go/no-go task when responses had to be intermittently inhibited then immediately restarted. Basic motor functions were not impacted. Findings are discussed in relation to dopamine's role in switching signals within neural networks that are important for response modulation and affective control.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1979

A method for determining patients' perceptions of their health needs.

Success or failure in establishing a meaningful relationship between physician and patient depends to a large extent on how fully the patient communicates, and the physician understands, his/her health needs. Return visits, compliance with the physician's prescribed regimen, and the effectiveness of the treatment and rehabilitation are also closely related to the disclosure and assessment of the patient's health needs. A model of how health needs are determined is presented. Various behavioral outcomes which follow the identification of a health problem and assessment of health needs by a patient are discussed. A Health Needs Assessment Questionnaire is presented in English and Spanish to be used and tested as an aid to the family physician in assessing patient's health needs at the first encounter.

Attitude to Health↗
PubMed2000

An analysis of employee voting behavior in multi-union certification elections among unaffiliated unions.

Unions experience higher success rates in multi-union certification elections than in single-union elections. In multi-union elections, unions have the highest victory rate when the two unions competing against each other are unaffiliated unions. The outcomes of the multi-union election process involving unaffiliated unions are examined with respect to election type and type of competition among unions.

Certification↗
PubMed2005

Determinants guiding alternate foot placement selection and the behavioral responses are similar when avoiding a real or a virtual obstacle.

In this study we validate the use of a virtual planar obstacle paradigm to study the avoidance of a real obstacle, such as a hole, during locomotion. Also we further validate the economy determinant implicated with the minimization of foot displacement from its normal landing position during alternate foot placement. Participants were asked to perform two blocks of trials: real (a real hole was embedded in the pathway and participants were requested to avoid stepping into it) and virtual (a virtual planar obstacle was displayed on the screen of a liquid crystal display monitor). Trunk and feet kinematics were monitored, as well as electromyography (EMG) activity of 14 muscles of both lower limbs and trunk. The results of this study showed that the dominant choice for each obstacle investigated was not different between the real and virtual conditions. In addition, dynamic stability, economy and forward progression determinants guiding alternate foot placement were similarly satisfied. Thus the use of virtual planar obstacle in adaptive locomotion study is appropriate. EMG data were used to compute an index relating the changes in muscle activity relative to the normal walking profile. This EMG index was significantly and positively correlated with the amount of foot displacement for the adaptive step. The fact that the dominant choice resulted in minimum foot displacement from its normal landing spot combined with minimal changes in muscle activity validates conclusively the economy determinant.

Adolescent↗