title: Effects of glucose load on cognitive functions in elderly people.
abstract: Glucose is the main fuel for the brain, and manipulation of the glucose supply may consequently affect brain function. The present review was conducted to provide an overview of studies that investigated the acute effects of glucose load on memory and other cognitive functions in elderly people. The effects of sucrose on cognition and suggested mechanisms were also explored. A total of twenty studies met the inclusion criteria. In the majority of studies, episodic memory was investigated and a beneficial role for glucose in that specific cognitive domain was suggested. Other cognitive domains, i.e., working memory, semantic memory, visual memory, information-processing speed, attention, executive function, and visual/spatial function, have been studied less frequently and evidence for a beneficial effect of glucose was equivocal. Mechanisms are suggested to be mainly related to the human body's need for glucose as a metabolic substrate for physiological mechanisms in both central and peripheral processes.
authors.affiliation: Affiliations: NL van der Zwaluw, O. van de Rest, and LCPGM de Groot are with the Division of Human Nutrition, Wageningen University, Wageningen, the Netherlands. RPC Kessels is with the Department of Geriatrics, the Department of Medical Psychology, and Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands. NikitavanderZwaluw@gmail.
authors.forename: Nikita L
authors.initials: NL
authors.lastname: van der Zwaluw
authors.affiliation: Affiliations: NL van der Zwaluw, O. van de Rest, and LCPGM de Groot are with the Division of Human Nutrition, Wageningen University, Wageningen, the Netherlands. RPC Kessels is with the Department of Geriatrics, the Department of Medical Psychology, and Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
authors.forename: Ondine
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: van de Rest
authors.affiliation: Affiliations: NL van der Zwaluw, O. van de Rest, and LCPGM de Groot are with the Division of Human Nutrition, Wageningen University, Wageningen, the Netherlands. RPC Kessels is with the Department of Geriatrics, the Department of Medical Psychology, and Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
authors.forename: Roy P C
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Kessels
authors.affiliation: Affiliations: NL van der Zwaluw, O. van de Rest, and LCPGM de Groot are with the Division of Human Nutrition, Wageningen University, Wageningen, the Netherlands. RPC Kessels is with the Department of Geriatrics, the Department of Medical Psychology, and Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
authors.forename: Lisette C P G M
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: de Groot
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001288:Attention / Q000187:drug effects; D001921:Brain / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D003071:Cognition / Q000187:drug effects*; D056344:Executive Function / Q000187:drug effects; D005947:Glucose / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D008568:Memory / Q000187:drug effects; D065855:Spatial Processing / Q000187:drug effects; D013395:Sucrose / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D013395:Sucrose; D005947:Glucose
keywords: aging; brain; cognition; cognitive decline; fructose; glucose; memory; sucrose; sugar