Investigating the acute cognitive effects of dietary compounds using fNIRS: methodological limitations and perspectives for research targeting healthy adults

The brain’s response to cognitive demands hinges on sufficient blood flow, with changes in brain hemodynamics serving as a reflection of this process. Certain bioactive compounds found in our diet, such as caffeine, polyphenols, and nitrate, can acutely impact brain hemodynamics through diverse neur...

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Main Authors: Sélima Zahar, Dimitri Van de Ville, Julie Hudry
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2024-12-01
Series:Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnhum.2024.1493880/full
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author Sélima Zahar
Sélima Zahar
Dimitri Van de Ville
Dimitri Van de Ville
Julie Hudry
author_facet Sélima Zahar
Sélima Zahar
Dimitri Van de Ville
Dimitri Van de Ville
Julie Hudry
author_sort Sélima Zahar
collection DOAJ
description The brain’s response to cognitive demands hinges on sufficient blood flow, with changes in brain hemodynamics serving as a reflection of this process. Certain bioactive compounds found in our diet, such as caffeine, polyphenols, and nitrate, can acutely impact brain hemodynamics through diverse neural, vasoactive, and metabolic mechanisms. Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) offers a non-invasive and real-time method to investigate these effects. Despite their potential, fNIRS studies investigating the acute impacts of bioactive compounds on cognition face methodological gaps, especially in controlling confounding factors. Given the impact of these confounding effects, which can be significant due to the relatively limited sample size of such studies, there is a need to refine the methodologies employed. This review proposes recommendations to enhance current methodologies in the research field, focusing on key aspects of the data collection phase, including research design, experimental paradigms, and participant demographics, and their integration into the analysis phase. Ultimately, it seeks to advance our understanding of the effects of bioactive compounds on cognitive functions to contribute to the development of targeted nutritional interventions for improved brain health.
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spelling doaj-art-f0c4f0613e204fc6a7dcdb4d8981f0762025-08-20T02:30:23ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Human Neuroscience1662-51612024-12-011810.3389/fnhum.2024.14938801493880Investigating the acute cognitive effects of dietary compounds using fNIRS: methodological limitations and perspectives for research targeting healthy adultsSélima Zahar0Sélima Zahar1Dimitri Van de Ville2Dimitri Van de Ville3Julie Hudry4Mood and Performance Group, Department of Brain Health, Nestlé Research, Nestlé Institute of Health Sciences, Lausanne, SwitzerlandMedical Image Processing Laboratory, School of Engineering, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Neuro-X Institute, Geneva, SwitzerlandMedical Image Processing Laboratory, School of Engineering, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Neuro-X Institute, Geneva, SwitzerlandDepartment of Radiology and Medical Informatics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, SwitzerlandMood and Performance Group, Department of Brain Health, Nestlé Research, Nestlé Institute of Health Sciences, Lausanne, SwitzerlandThe brain’s response to cognitive demands hinges on sufficient blood flow, with changes in brain hemodynamics serving as a reflection of this process. Certain bioactive compounds found in our diet, such as caffeine, polyphenols, and nitrate, can acutely impact brain hemodynamics through diverse neural, vasoactive, and metabolic mechanisms. Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS) offers a non-invasive and real-time method to investigate these effects. Despite their potential, fNIRS studies investigating the acute impacts of bioactive compounds on cognition face methodological gaps, especially in controlling confounding factors. Given the impact of these confounding effects, which can be significant due to the relatively limited sample size of such studies, there is a need to refine the methodologies employed. This review proposes recommendations to enhance current methodologies in the research field, focusing on key aspects of the data collection phase, including research design, experimental paradigms, and participant demographics, and their integration into the analysis phase. Ultimately, it seeks to advance our understanding of the effects of bioactive compounds on cognitive functions to contribute to the development of targeted nutritional interventions for improved brain health.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnhum.2024.1493880/fullfNIRScognitionnutritionintervention studiesexperimental designprocessing
spellingShingle Sélima Zahar
Sélima Zahar
Dimitri Van de Ville
Dimitri Van de Ville
Julie Hudry
Investigating the acute cognitive effects of dietary compounds using fNIRS: methodological limitations and perspectives for research targeting healthy adults
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
fNIRS
cognition
nutrition
intervention studies
experimental design
processing
title Investigating the acute cognitive effects of dietary compounds using fNIRS: methodological limitations and perspectives for research targeting healthy adults
title_full Investigating the acute cognitive effects of dietary compounds using fNIRS: methodological limitations and perspectives for research targeting healthy adults
title_fullStr Investigating the acute cognitive effects of dietary compounds using fNIRS: methodological limitations and perspectives for research targeting healthy adults
title_full_unstemmed Investigating the acute cognitive effects of dietary compounds using fNIRS: methodological limitations and perspectives for research targeting healthy adults
title_short Investigating the acute cognitive effects of dietary compounds using fNIRS: methodological limitations and perspectives for research targeting healthy adults
title_sort investigating the acute cognitive effects of dietary compounds using fnirs methodological limitations and perspectives for research targeting healthy adults
topic fNIRS
cognition
nutrition
intervention studies
experimental design
processing
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnhum.2024.1493880/full
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