A meal enriched in saturated fat acutely impairs cognitive performance in obese men

Gregory N Ruegsegger; Chapin I Rappaport; Justin J Hill; Kelly A Jochum; Erik S Challeen; Michael C Roth

doi:10.1016/j.physbeh.2021.113664

A meal enriched in saturated fat acutely impairs cognitive performance in obese men

Physiol Behav. 2022 Feb 1:244:113664. doi: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2021.113664. Epub 2021 Nov 27.

Authors

Gregory N Ruegsegger¹, Chapin I Rappaport², Justin J Hill², Kelly A Jochum², Erik S Challeen², Michael C Roth²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Health and Human Performance, University of Wisconsin-River Falls, River Falls, WI 54022 United States. Electronic address: gregory.ruegsegger@uwrf.edu.
² Department of Health and Human Performance, University of Wisconsin-River Falls, River Falls, WI 54022 United States.

PMID: 34848278
DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2021.113664

Abstract

Background: Diets chronically high in saturated fat (SFA) associate with obesity and insulin resistance (IR), which in turn associate with cognitive decline and dementia. However, understanding how acute SFA consumption influences cognition is less clear despite short-term SFA-enriched diets inducing whole-body IR. We examined how consuming meals enriched with SFA or monounsaturated fat (MUFA) acutely influence cognitive function in lean and obese men. We hypothesized that greater diet-induced IR following a SFA-enriched meal would associate with decreased cognitive performance.

Methods: Twelve lean and 12 obese males ingested meals containing no fat (CTL), enriched with SFA, or enriched with MUFA in a single-blind, randomized fashion. Cognitive testing and blood sampling were performed pre- and 2 h post-meal. Oral glucose tolerance (OGTT) and body composition were also assessed.

Results: At baseline, fasting glucose, insulin, HOMA-IR, triglyceride, IL-6, and 2-hr glucose during an OGTT were higher in obese men (p < 0.001), while executive function (Stroop Test and Trail Making Test B-A) and working memory (Digit Span Test) were lower in obese men (p < 0.05). In response to the CTL and MUFA-enriched, no differences in cognitive measures were observed in lean or obese subjects. Following a SFA-enriched meal, obese subjects scored worse during cognitive testing (Stroop Test, Trail Making Test B-A, and Digit Span Test) compared to pre-meal scores (p < 0.05). These impairments in cognitive testing scores following the SFA-enriched meal associated with increased HOMA-IR (p < 0.01) and decreased plasma IL-6 (p < 0.05). No changes in cognitive function were observed in lean subjects following a SFA-enriched meal.

Conclusions: These data demonstrate that cognitive performance of obese men acutely worsens following a high-SFA meal. Reductions in cognitive performance associated with increased IR, suggesting that diet-induced IR may acutely decrease cognitive function.

Keywords: Dietary fat; Executive function; Insulin resistance; Memory; Nutrition.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Blood Glucose
Cognition
Cross-Over Studies
Dietary Fats* / pharmacology
Fatty Acids*
Humans
Insulin
Male
Meals
Obesity
Postprandial Period
Single-Blind Method

Substances

Blood Glucose
Dietary Fats
Fatty Acids
Insulin