Metabolic Syndrome and Cognitive Function in Healthy Middle-Aged and Older Adults without Diabetes

ABSTRACT

Objective: Few studies have addressed whether the metabolic syndrome (MetS) and its individual components are associated with cognitive function in middle-aged and older populations, as well as whether specific areas of cognition are more affected than others. We examined the cross-sectional association between MetS and six areas of cognitive function in healthy cognitively intact adults without diabetes (n?=?853, mean age 61 years) randomized in two intervention trials. Methods: The National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) criteria were used to identify subjects with MetS. Cognitive function was assessed with a neuropsychological battery. A principal components analysis was used to extract five uncorrelated factors interpreted to represent five areas of cognition, and a measure of global cognition was calculated. Results: MetS was weakly but non-significantly associated with lower verbal learning (β?=??.14 [SE(β)?=?0.09], p?=?.15). As the number of MetS criteria increased, scores on global cognition (p trend?=?.01), verbal learning (p trend?=?.06) and semantic memory (p trend?=?.04) decreased. Hypertension was the only MetS risk factor that was independently correlated with lower verbal learning (β?=??.17 [SE(β) =?0.08], p?=?.04), semantic memory (β?=??.26 [SE(β)?=?0.08], p?=?.001) and global cognition (β?=??.15 [SE(β)?=?0.07], p?=?.04). Conclusion: This study adds to the evidence of an association between MetS and lower cognitive function among healthy middle-aged and older adults without CVD and diabetes, as well as confirms the correlation between hypertension and lower cognition.     

Studying for autonomous reasons and having a promotion orientation: key predictors of individual differences in expectancies of success in English

This research used the expectancy-value theory to examine the extent to which three classes of motivation antecedents predicted secondary-school students’ expectancies of success in English....     

Analyzing student motivation at the confluence of achievement goals and their underlying reasons: an investigation of goal complexes

This research investigated the interrelations among achievement goals and the underlying reasons for pursuing them. To do so, it utilized the framework of goal complexes, which are regulatory constructs defined at the intersection of aims and reasons. Data from two independent large samples of New Zealand university students showed that across types of reasons, namely development versus demonstration of competence/ability, and approach-avoidance tendencies pertaining to aims and reasons, respectively, participants rated lowest items mapping normative aims. Additionally, for most non-normative achievement goals, which in this study were related to task and own past performance, students endorsed more strongly items pertaining to the development rather than the demonstration of competence/ability. This pattern of results was reversed for approach—but not avoidance—related reasons associated with normative aims. These findings are largely consistent with the tenets of cognitive dissonance theory and have important implications for pedagogical practice, policy development, and the study of self-evaluation and cognitive processes. In addition, they delineate new directions for fruitful future research.