A Review of the Effects of Lunch: On Adults’ Short-term Cognitive Functioning

Abstract

Because of widespread irregular lunch consumption by both children and adults, information on the effects of lunch on short-term cognitive functioning is relevant to public health. In September 2012, a MEDLINE search was conducted for studies in which the effects of lunch on cognitive performance were examined. Eleven experimental studies published from 1981 to 1996 were found and evaluated; all involved adults. In three studies, the effects of lunch and lunch skipping were compared; the remaining studies involved a determination of the effects of lunch size and lunch composition. Results of studies in which lunch was compared with no lunch indicate that lunch leads to potential impairment of some aspects of cognitive functioning in the early afternoon. Lunch size may influence cognitive functioning, with impairment more likely to occur after a large lunch than a small lunch. Furthermore, in comparison with low-fat lunches, high-fat lunches seem to result in slower but more accurate responses to some cognitive tasks. However, these suggestions must be viewed with caution, as they are based on only a few studies and are not thoroughly supported by high-quality evidence. In addition, results obtained with adults are not applicable to children. Thus, the potential effects of lunch need further examination in children and adults.

The effectiveness of healthy meals at work on reaction time, mood and dietary intake: a randomised cross-over study in daytime and shift workers at an university hospital

“…A healthy diet, including a high consumption of fruit and vegetables, fatty fish and nuts, and a low intake of SFA, has been associated with cognitive benefits in children, old adults and in midlife (3)(4)(5)(6) . Conversely, skipping meals or eating sugary snacks can result in low blood glucose levels, causing slowed reaction time, lowered concentration and mood (7)(8)(9) .…”

Lunch at school and children’s cognitive functioning in the early afternoon: results from the Cognition Intervention Study Dortmund Continued (CoCo)

“…Studies about school lunch and short-term effects on children's cognition are rare (10) . To the best of our knowledge, there are only two cross-over, intervention trials from our group, which Abbreviations: CF, cognitive functions; CoCo, Cognition Intervention Study Dortmund Continued; L, lunch; NL, no lunch.…”

Internet-delivered attentional bias modification training (iABMT) for the management of chronic musculoskeletal pain: a protocol for a randomised controlled trial

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