Dietary Carbohydrate Consumption on Memory Performance and Mood in Children

The Effect of Dietary Carbohydrate Consumption on Memory Performance and Mood in Normal Weight and Overweight/Obese Children

The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of carbohydrates on blood glucose levels, subjective appetite, mood, and memory performance in 9 to 14 year old normal weight (NW) and overweight or obese (OW/OB) children.

NW and OW/OB children, 9-14 years of age, will participate in the experiment. The effect of 5 different meals (mashed potatoes, hash browns, French fries, rice, or beans matched by 50g of available carbohydrate) and meal skipping will be examined. On six separate mornings, one of the meals or no meal will be provided in a random order upon their arrival. Blood glucose, subjective appetite, and mood will be measured at baseline, 10, 30, 60, 120, and 180 minutes after meal consumption. Cognitive performance will be measured using an immediate and delayed word recall test, and two to three executive function tasks at 10, 30, 60, 120, and 180 minutes after meal consumption.

Inclusion Criteria:

• be between 9 and 14 years of age
• be healthy, and have been born at term
• be a native English speaker
• not be taking any medications
• not have allergies to potatoes, rice, or beans.
• normal body weight (between the 5th and 85th BMI percentile for age and gender)
• OW/OB (>85th BMI percentile for age and gender)

Exclusion Criteria:

• Food sensitivities, allergies, or dietary restrictions
• Health, learning, emotional, or behaivoural problems
• Receiving any medications