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<\/p>\nAs we approach the loved holiday season, we also approach the dreaded weight gain that comes along with it.\u00a0 It probably won\u2019t come as a surprise to you that our brain, specifically the hippocampus, plays a role in resisting immediate or delayed temptation.<\/p>\n
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The hippocampus deals with memory, including recalling past events and imagining them in the future.\u00a0 A study called \u201cA Critical Role for the Hippocampus in the Valuation of Imagined Outcomes\u201d examines healthy people as well as people with Alzheimer\u2019s disease, which impairs memory and is associated with atrophy of the hippocampus.\u00a0 The study looked at \u201ctime- dependent\u201d choices having to do with money in addition to \u201cepisodic\u201d choices having to do with food, sports, and cultural events.<\/p>\n
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Fifteen participants were given a series of decisions about choosing one reward over another, where one reward is immediate and the other is delayed.\u00a0 Some of the rewards were shown in a picture format and others were just given in a text format where the participants would imagine what the reward would be. Participants tended to choose the delayed reward when it was described in text, assumedly because it forced them to imagine in more detail.<\/p>\n
In another, similar experiment, twenty participants faced the same kinds of decisions.\u00a0 The researcher concluded that research participants were consistent with themselves in what they chose, reflecting their individual impulsiveness.\u00a0 Depending on the person, they would choose the immediate reward or they were willing to choose the delayed reward, regardless of how it was presented.\u00a0 The researcher argued that there was a case to argue about an \u201cimpulsive trait\u201d in some participants but not in others.\u00a0 This experiment also had a functional magnetic resonance image (fMRI) component in order to look at the activation patterns in the hippocampus.\u00a0 The results found that the hippocampus was more active when the reward options were given in the text format because it forced the participant to be more imaginative and relate them to previous memories.<\/p>\n
When using participants with Alzheimer\u2019s, researchers found that these people tended to choose the reward shown in pictures rather than written in text.\u00a0 Researchers believe that the damage to the hippocampus in Alzheimer\u2019s patients is extremely significant in evaluating these results, as it hinders their recall of positive food memories.<\/p>\n
What did we learn?\u00a0 Well, with such a small sample size, there is a lot more research to be done to determine what the relationship between impulsive behaviors and brain activity is.\u00a0 There is currently a lot of research being done on the areas of the brain most associated with self- control.<\/p>\n
How can we use this to help us this holiday season?\u00a0 Maybe this is a lesson in how certain foods are presented to us.\u00a0 It seems that according to these results, we will eat less with the food presented visually to us as opposed to on a written menu. And, maybe when trying to decide whether to have that last piece of pie, try not to imagine it.\u00a0 Have a happy holiday season!<\/p>\n
-Melissa Heller<\/p>\n
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Additional Reading<\/strong><\/p>\n