Related Episodes for A Small Trial Tested Meal Timing and Nighttime Blood Pressure

“Acutely, however, caffeine can raise glucose or reduce insulin sensitivity in some people through sympathetic activation, so a short-term glucose response is not identical to the longer-term association. Timing provides the practical answer.”

“Certain lifestyle behaviors, such as napping, caffeine consumption, late-night use of electronic devices, and a host of other bad habits, can make falling and staying asleep difficult.”

“For example, while vitamin C acts primarily as an antioxidant at physiological concentrations of approximately 50 micromoles per liter, pharmacologic doses of intravenous vitamin C greater than 1 gram generate hydrogen peroxide, a type of reactive oxygen species produced by neutrophils to destroy pathogens such as viruses.”

“The most compelling human signal appears when the brain is under acute strain. In a randomized crossover study, a single dose of 0.35 grams per kilogram during 21 hours of sleep deprivation changed cerebral energy metabolites and preserved selected measures of cognitive performance.”

“A recent meta-analysis also found small benefits in selected cognitive domains, including memory and processing speed, with responses that may depend on age, diet, baseline stores, stress, dose, and the cognitive test used.”

“A separate six-week randomized study in 30 healthy young adults found that neither 10 nor 20 grams per day improved the tested cognitive outcomes compared with placebo. The result is an important counterweight to the acute sleep-deprivation experiment.”

“Acute stress may create a different context. In a double-blind crossover study of 15 adults undergoing 21 hours of sleep deprivation, a single 0.35-gram-per-kilogram dose changed brain high-energy phosphate measures and improved selected cognitive outcomes.”

Dan Pardi: Ph.D. candidate studying sleep neurobiology at Stanford and University of Leiden, co-founder of Dan’s Plan online wellness company.

“A 2023 network meta-analysis of 270 randomized trials found average reductions after aerobic, dynamic resistance, combined, high-intensity interval, and isometric training, with the largest pooled estimate for isometric exercise.”

“Sprint-interval exercise improved reaction time on selected executive-function tasks for about 10 to 30 minutes in a controlled study, supporting Dr. Patrick's practice of using a short workout before an early talk or demanding meeting.”