title: Association between Blood Omega-3 Index and Cognition in Typically Developing Dutch Adolescents Glycaemic index and glycaemic load of breakfast predict cognitive function and mood in school children: a randomised controlled trial. International table of glycemic index and glycemic load values: 2002. Breakfast reduces declines in attention and memory over the morning in schoolchildren Executive functions and school readiness intervention: impact, moderation, and mediation in the Head Start REDI program. Diet-induced changes in iron and n-3 fatty acid status and associations with cognitive performance in 8-11-year-old Danish children: secondary analyses of the Optimal Well-Being, Development and Health for Danish Children through a Healthy New Nordic Diet School Meal Study. Omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acid ratio and higher-order cognitive functions in 7- to 9-y-olds: a cross-sectional study. Prospective associations between dietary patterns and cognitive performance during adolescence. Psychopathology as a predictor of adolescent drug use trajectories. Improved cognitive performance following supplementation with a mixed-grain diet in high school students: a randomized controlled trial.
abstract: The impact of omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids ( LCPUFAs ) on cognition is heavily debated . In the current study , the possible association between omega-3 LCPUFAs in blood and cognitive performance of 266 typically developing adolescents aged 13–15 years is investigated . Baseline data from Food2Learn , a double-blind and r and omized placebo controlled krill oil supplementation trial in typically developing adolescents , were used for the current study . The Omega-3 Index was determined with blood from a finger prick . At baseline , participants finished a neuropsychological test battery consisting of the Letter Digit Substitution Test ( LDST ) , D2 test of attention , Digit Span Forward and Backward , Concept Shifting Test and Stroop test . Data were analyzed with multiple regression analyses with correction for covariates . The average Omega-3 Index was 3.83 % ( SD 0.60 ) . Regression analyses between the Omega-3 Index and the outcome parameters revealed significant associations with scores on two of the nine parameters . The association between the Omega-3 Index and both scores on the LDST ( β = 0.136 and p = 0.039 ) , and the number of errors of omission on the D2 ( β = −0.053 and p = 0.007 ) . This is a possible indication for a higher information processing speed and less impulsivity in those with a higher Omega-3 Index The macronutrient composition of a breakfast that could facilitate performance after an overnight fast remains unclear . As glucose is the brain 's major energy source , the interest is in investigating meals differing in their blood glucose-raising potential . Findings vary due to unaccounted differences in glucoregulation , arousal and cortisol secretion . We investigated the effects of meals differing in glycaemic index ( GI ) and glycaemic load ( GL ) on cognition and mood in school children . A total of seventy-four school children were matched and r and omly allocated either to the  high-GL or low-GL  group . Within each GL group , children received high-GI and low-GI breakfasts .  Cognitive function ( CF ) and mood were measured 95 - 140 min after breakfast . Blood glucose and salivary cortisol were measured at baseline , before and after the CF tests . Repeated- measures ANOVA was used to identify differences in CF , mood , glucose and cortisol levels between the breakfasts . Low-GI meals predicted feeling more alert and happy , and less nervous and thirsty ( P < 0·05 for each ) ; high-GL meals predicted feeling more confident , and less sluggish , hungry and thirsty ( P < 0·05 for each ) . High-GL ( P < 0·001 ) and high-GI ( P = 0·05 ) meals increased glucose levels 90 min after breakfast , and high-GI meals increased cortisol levels ( P < 0·01 ) . When baseline mood , glucose and cortisol levels were considered , low-GI meals predicted better declarative-verbal memory ( P = 0·03 ) , and high-GI meals better vigilance ( P < 0·03 ) ; observed GI effects were valid across GL groups . GI effects on cognition appear to be domain specific . On balance , it would appear that the low-GI high-GL breakfast may help to improve learning , and of potential value in informing government education policies relating to dietary recommendations and implementation concerning breakfast Reliable tables of glycemic index ( GI ) compiled from the scientific literature are instrumental in improving the quality of research examining the relation between GI , glycemic load , and health . The GI has proven to be a more useful nutritional concept than is the chemical classification of carbohydrate ( as simple or complex , as sugars or starches , or as available or unavailable ) , permitting new insights into the relation between the physiologic effects of carbohydrate-rich foods and health . Several prospect i ve observational studies have shown that the chronic consumption of a diet with a high glycemic load ( GI x dietary carbohydrate content ) is independently associated with an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes , cardiovascular disease , and certain cancers . This revised table contains almost 3 times the number of foods listed in the original table ( first published in this Journal in 1995 ) and contains nearly 1300 data entries derived from published and unpublished verified sources , representing > 750 different types of foods tested with the use of st and ard methods . The revised table also lists the glycemic load associated with the consumption of specified serving sizes of different foods Twenty-nine schoolchildren were tested throughout the morning on 4 successive days , having a different breakfast each day ( either of the cereals Cheerios or Shreddies , glucose drink or No breakfast ) . A series of computerised tests of attention , working memory and episodic secondary memory was conducted prior to breakfast and again 30 , 90 , 150 and 210 min later . The glucose drink and No breakfast conditions were followed by declines in attention and memory , but the declines were significantly reduced in the two cereal conditions . This study provides objective evidence that a typical breakfast of cereal rich in complex carbohydrates can help maintain mental performance over the morning Despite their potentially central role in fostering school readiness , executive function ( EF ) skills have received little explicit attention in the design and evaluation of school readiness interventions for socioeconomically disadvantaged children . The present study examined a set of five EF measures in the context of a r and omized-controlled trial of a research -based intervention integrated into Head Start programs ( Head Start REDI ) .  Three hundred fifty-six 4-year-old children ( 17 % Hispanic , 25 % African American ; 54 % girls ) were followed over the course of the prekindergarten year .  Initial EF predicted gains in cognitive and social-emotional skills and moderated the impact of the Head Start REDI intervention  on some outcomes . The REDI intervention promoted gains on two EF measures , which partially mediated intervention effects on school readiness . We discuss the importance of further study of the neurobiological bases of school readiness , the implication s for intervention design , and the value of incorporating markers of neurobiological processes into school readiness interventions Fe and n-3 long-chain PUFA ( n-3 LCPUFA ) have both been associated with cognition , but evidence remains inconclusive in well-nourished school-aged children . In the Optimal Well-Being , Development and Health for Danish Children through a Healthy New Nordic Diet ( OPUS ) School Meal Study , the 3-month intervention increased reading performance , inattention , impulsivity and dietary intake of fish and Fe . This study investigated whether the intervention influenced n-3 LCPUFA and Fe status and , if so , explored how these changes correlated with the changes in cognitive performance . The study was a cluster-r and omised cross-over trial comparing school meals with packed lunch ( control ) . At baseline and after each treatment , we measured serum ferritin , whole-blood n-3 LCPUFA and Hb , and performance in reading , mathematics and d2-test of attention . Data were analysed using mixed models ( n 726 ) and principal component analysis of test performances ( n 644 ) , which showed two main patterns : ' school performance ' and ' reading comprehension ' . The latter indicated that children with good reading comprehension were also more inattentive and impulsive ( i.e. higher d2-test error% ) . The intervention improved ' school performance ' ( P=0·015 ) , ' reading comprehension ' ( P=0·043 ) and EPA+DHA status 0·21 ( 95 % CI 0·15 , 0·27 ) w/w % ( P<0·001 ) , but it did not affect serum ferritin or Hb . At baseline , having small Fe stores was associated with poorer ' school performance ' in girls , but with better ' reading comprehension ' in both boys and girls . Both baseline EPA+DHA status and the intervention-induced increase in EPA+DHA status was positively associated with ' school performance ' , suggesting that n-3 LCPUFA could potentially explain approximately 20 % of the intervention effect . These exploratory associations indicate that increased fish intake might explain some of the increase in reading performance and inattention in the study BACKGROUND Biochemical and behavioral evidence has suggested that the ratio of n-6 ( omega-6 ) to n-3 ( omega-3 ) could be an important predictor of executive function abilities in children . OBJECTIVE We determined the relation between the ratio of n-6 to n-3 and  cognitive function in children . We hypothesized that children with lower ratios of n-6 to n-3 fatty acids would perform better on tests of planning and working memory . DESIGN Seventy 7- to 9-y-old children completed three 24-h diet recalls and a subset of the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Assessment Battery .  Parents provided information on their demographics and children 's diet histories . RESULTS Mean n-3 and mean n-6 intakes were related to the mean time spent on each action taken in the planning problem . The ratio of n-6 to n-3 significantly predicted performance on the working memory and planning problems . There was a significant interaction between the ratio and fatty acid intake ; when children had high ratios , a higher intake of n-3 fatty acids predicted a better performance on the planning task than when children had lower n-3 intakes . When children had low ratios , a lower intake of n-3 and lower intake of n-6 predicted better performance than when intakes were higher . CONCLUSIONS The relation between cognitive abilities and the ratio of n-6 to n-3 may be mediated by an enzymatic affinity for n-3 fatty acids . The ratio of n-6 to n-3 should be considered an important factor in the study of fatty acids and cognitive development . This trial was registered at clinical trials.gov as NCT01823419 BACKGROUND The aim of the study was to investigate prospect i ve associations between dietary patterns and cognitive performance during adolescence . METHODS Participants were source d from the Western Australian Pregnancy Cohort ( Raine ) Study that includes 2868 children born between 1989 and 1992 in Perth , Western Australia . When the children were 17 years old ( 2006 - 2009 ) , cognitive performance was assessed using a computerized cognitive battery of tests ( CogState ) that included six tasks . Using a food frequency question naire administered when the children were 14 years old ( 2003 - 2006 ) , ' Healthy ' and ' Western ' dietary patterns were identified by factor analysis . Associations between dietary patterns at 14 years of age and cognitive performance at 17 years of age were assessed prospect ively using multivariate regression models . RESULTS Dietary and cognitive performance data were available for 602 participants . Following adjustment for the ' Healthy ' dietary pattern , total energy intake , maternal education , family income , father 's presence in the family , family functioning and gender , we found that a longer reaction time in the detection task ( β = .016 ; 95 % CI : 0.004 ; 0.028 ; p = .009 ) and a higher number of total errors in the Groton Maze Learning Test - delayed recall task ( β = .060 ; 95 % CI : 0.006 ; 0.114 ; p = .029 ) were significantly associated with higher scores on the ' Western ' dietary pattern . The ' Western ' dietary pattern was characterized by high intakes of take-away food , red and processed meat , soft drink , fried and refined food . We also found that within the dietary patterns , high intake of fried potato , crisps and red meat had negative associations , while increased fruit and leafy green vegetable intake had positive associations with some aspects of cognitive performance . CONCLUSION Higher dietary intake of the ' Western ' dietary pattern at age 14 is associated with diminished cognitive performance 3 years later , at 17 years The authors examined early psychopathology  as a predictor of  trajectories of drug use from ages 13 - 18 years . Six years of annual data were analyzed for 506 boys using a mixed effects polynomial growth curve model . They tested whether distinct measures of psychopathology and behavioral problems ( i.e. , attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder , oppositional defiant disorder , conduct disorder , depression , and violence ) assessed in early adolescence could prospect ively predict level and change in alcohol and marijuana use . Higher levels of all of the types of psychopathology predicted higher levels of alcohol use , and higher levels of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder , conduct disorder , and violence predicted higher levels of marijuana use . Only conduct disorder predicted linear growth in alcohol use , and none of the measures predicted growth in marijuana use . The results suggest that drug use prevention programs should target youths with early symptoms of psychopathology OBJECTIVE Adolescence is a stage of rapid growth , when rich nutritional supplementation is important . Maintaining optimal cognitive functioning is critical in high school students , who are under considerable academic pressure . The objectives of this study were to identify the effects of a 9-wk r and omly assigned diet of mixed grains versus a regular diet on cognitive performance and on levels of plasma brain-derived neurotrophic factor ( BDNF ) and S100B , a calcium-binding protein produced by astroglial cells , in healthy high school students ( grade s 10 and 11 ) . METHODS In this 9-wk , single-blind , controlled study , subjects were r and omly allocated to either a mixed-grain or a regular diet .  Cognitive assessment s and measurements of plasma BDNF and S100B levels were performed at baseline and after the 9-wk intake of a mixed-grain or regular diet .  Computerized neuropsychological tests and self-rating scales were used for the cognitive assessment s. RESULTS Significant improvements in some neuropsychological tests were found after 9 wk in both the mixed-grain and the regular-diet groups , but the changes from baseline between the two groups were not significantly different . Significant impairments on the AX-continuous performance test were observed at the endpoint in the regular-diet group , and the changes from baseline between the two groups were also significantly different for this test . A significant difference in changes in BDNF levels was observed between the two groups . CONCLUSIONS These results suggest that intake of mixed grains for 9 wk is beneficial for cognitive performance and plasma BDNF levels in high school students . These beneficial effects seem to be related to the prevention of cognitive deterioration in a mental-fatigue test with the mixed-grain diet , rather than cognitive enhancement per se
target: Taken together , evidence suggests a positive association between healthy dietary consumption and executive functioning .
background: A systematic review was conducted to evaluate whether healthier dietary consumption  among children and adolescents impacts executive functioning .