The objective distinction of different types of mental demands as well as their intensity is relevant for research and practical application but poses a challenge for established physiological methods. We investigated whether respiratory gases (oxygen uptake and carbon dioxide output) are suitable to distinguish between emotional stress and cognitive load. To this end, we compared the application of spirometry with an established procedure, namely electrodermal activity (EDA). Our results indicate that electrodermal activity shows a strong responsivity to emotional stress induction, which was highly correlated with its responsivity to cognitive load. Respiratory gases were both sensitive and specific to cognitive load and had the advantage of being predictive for cognitive performance as well as self-reported emotional state. These results support the notion that respiratory gases are a valuable complement to common physiological procedures in the detection and discrimination of different mental demands.

Existing evidence on the effects of glucose supplementation on cognitive performance appears inconclusive. Metabolic switching offers an approach to explain such incoherent findings based on differences in cognitive functioning after fasting. We propose a new construct, cognitive glucose sensitivity (CGS), which quantifies individual performance gain due to glucose supplementation. We tested the hypothesis that the effects of glucose ingestion depend on CGS, cognitive task domain, and sex. In addition, the relationship between CGS and body mass index (BMI) was examined. Seventy-one participants (48 female) were tested in two conditions each (deprivation baseline vs. glucose supplementation), performing tasks from different cognitive domains (memory and executive functioning). We found significant evidence for a correlation of deprivation baseline performance and CGS across domains (Corsi-Block-Tapping Task: r = −0.57, p < 0.001; Go-No-Go Task: r = 0.39, p = 0.001; word list recall: r = −0.50, p < 0.001). Moreover, individual CGS differed significantly between tasks (p = 0.018). Only in men, BMI was significantly related to CGS in a word recall paradigm (r = 0.49, p = 0.017). Our findings support the notion that the effects of glucose depend on CGS, task domain, and sex. The effort to reduce performance impairment (short-term) might sacrifice independence from external glucose (long term), possibly via declining blood glucose regulation. Therefore, CGS could be regarded as a candidate to enhance our understanding of the etiology of unhealthy eating.

Zusammenfassung Hintergrund Diabeteserkrankungen gehen häufig mit deutlichen Einschränkungen des psychischen Funktionsniveaus und Wohlergehens einher. Effektive Prävention und Gesundheitsförderung betroffener Personen setzt ein tiefgreifenderes Verständnis dieser Problematik voraus, welche der Interaktion psychischer und biologischer Prozesse entspringt. Ziel der Arbeit Die Studie soll einen Beitrag zum Verständnis leisten, inwiefern subjektiver kognitive Glukosesensitivität (kGS) mit Langzeitblutzucker (HbA1c) und diabetesbedingter Belastung bei Personen mit Diabetes Typ 1 zusammenhängen. Material und Methoden Im Rahmen einer Online-Studie wurden die relevanten Variablen (kGS, letzter Laborwert HbA1c, diabetesbedingte Belastung) ökonomisch mit Selbstberichtsfragebögen erfasst. Ergebnisse In der Stichprobe aus 354 erwachsenen Personen mit Typ-1-Diabetes (283 Frauen) fanden wir signifikante Korrelationen zwischen kGS und dem HbA1c (r[352] = 0,133, p = 0,006) sowie der diabetesbedingten Belastung (r[352] = 0,242, p < 0,001). Der HbA1c korrelierte auch signifikant mit der diabetesbedingten Belastung (r[352] = 0,223, p < 0,001). Schlussfolgerung Die Ergebnisse weisen darauf hin, dass die kGS physiologisch bedingt ist und in Zusammenhang mit etablierten, diabetesrelevanten Messgrößen (HbA1c und diabetesbedingter Belastung) steht. Insgesamt bekräftigen die gewonnen Erkenntnisse die Notwendigkeit vertiefender Erforschung und Entwicklung zugunsten einer ganzheitlichen Versorgung von Personen mit Diabetes, dessen integraler Bestandteil das Erleben und Verhalten Betroffener ist. Langfristig könnte so geklärt werden, inwiefern die Behandlung der kGS präventiv gegen die negativen Effekte von Diabeteserkrankungen auf die Psyche wirken kann und so der Gesundheitsförderung betroffener Personen zuträglich wäre.

The objective distinction of different types of mental demands as well as their intensity is relevant for research and practical application but poses a challenge for established physiological methods. We investigated whether respiratory gases (oxygen uptake and carbon dioxide output) are suitable to distinguish between emotional and cognitive demands. To this end, we compared the application of spirometry with an established procedure, namely electrodermal activity (EDA). Our results indicate that electrodermal activity shows a strong responsivity to emotional stress induction, which was highly correlated with its responsivity to cognitive load. Respiratory gases were both sensitive and specific to cognitive load and had the advantage of being predictive for cognitive performance as well as self-reported emotional state. These results support the notion that respiratory gases are a valuable complement to common physiological procedures in the detection and discrimination of different mental demands.