Young Adult Male Participants Research Articles

Room Steering Temperature Determination with Variable Concerned of Driver Conditions Who are Sleep Deprived and Road Condition

Among the main reasons for the high death rate worldwide are traffic accidents. The most common cause of road accidents is driver fatigue. Not getting enough sleep is one thing that makes people tired. A study on how sleep-deprived sleep-deprived drivers felt about themselves was conducted, and the results showed that they were tired. A potential preventive measure against the driver's extreme weariness is the room steering temperature. The goal of this research is to find the room temperature range that produces the most minor drowsiness is this research's goal. The research used six treatments in a 40-minute driving simulator: hot, cold, pleasant room temperature steering, and monotonous and non-monotonous road conditions. With the Electroencephalogram, one may measure one's state of sleepiness by monitoring brain wave activity. Six treatments were administered to each of the study's four young adult male participants. Teta, alpha, and beta wave powers are derived by processing data from brain wave activity using Matlab R2009A. An ANOVA test is used to discover which factors affect the degree of drowsiness by using the ratio of sleepiness level, which is determined using the equation (θ + α) /β. ANOVA test results indicated that while road conditions and room steering temperature impacted sleepiness, their interaction had no effect. Just the hot-cold level is found to be significantly different by the Tukey and Newman Keuls tests. For sleep-deprived drivers, the temperature differences between hot and cold conditions result in varying drowsiness. The research's practical conclusion is that, for sleep-deprived drivers, a hot temperature range (>26°C–29°C) can result in the lowest level of tiredness.

Acute exercise performed before and after motor practice enhances the positive effects on motor memory consolidation

Performing a single bout of exercise can enhance motor learning and long-term retention of motor skills. Parameters such as the intensity and when the exercise bout is performed in relation to skill practice (i.e., timing) likely influence the effectiveness. However, it is still not fully understood how exercise should be administered to maximize its effects and how exercise interacts with distinct components of skill learning. Here, we expand this knowledge by investigating the potential synergistic effects of performing acute exercise both prior to and following motor practice. Sixty-four, able-bodied, young adult male participants practiced a sequential visuomotor accuracy tracking (SVAT) task requiring rapid and accurate force modulation and high levels of precision control using intrinsic hand muscles. The task also contained a repeated pattern of targets that allowed sequence-specific skill improvements. Sequential and non-sequential motor performance was assessed at baseline, immediately after motor practice, and again seven days later. One group performed moderate-intensity exercise before practice (PREMO), a second group performed high-intensity exercise after practice (POSTHI), a third group exercised both before and after practice (PREMO + POSTHI), and a fourth group did not exercise during these periods (CON). Regardless of the exercise condition, acute exercise improved long-term retention of the skill by countering performance decay between experimental sessions (i.e., a 7-day interval). Furthermore, exercising both before and after motor practice led to the greatest improvements in skilled performance over time. We found that the effects of exercise were not specific to the practiced sequence. Namely, the effects of exercise generalized across sequential and non-sequential target positions and orders. This suggests that acute exercise works through mechanisms that promote general aspects of motor memory (e.g., lasting improvements in fast and accurate motor execution). The results demonstrate that various exercise protocols can promote the stabilization and long-term retention of motor skills. This effect can be enhanced when exercise is performed both before and after practice.

Study protocol for FUTURES: Testing a web-based reproductive health education program for adolescent and young adult males with sickle cell disease.

Individuals with sickle cell disease are increasingly surviving into adulthood, many of whom have interest in future biological parenthood. Reproductive health knowledge is low among adolescent and young adult males and their caregivers. Their understanding of these topics is needed to optimize their reproductive health outcomes. As such, through collaboration with a community advisory board (adolescents and young adults with sickle cell disease and mothers of adolescent and young adult males with sickle cell disease) and digital design team, we developed a web-based sickle cell disease-focused reproductive health program entitled FUTURES to address these knowledge gaps. For phase I of this two phase feasibility and acceptability study, adolescent and young adult males and their caregivers will complete a pre- and post-program reproductive health knowledge and attitudes questionnaire to assess change in knowledge. In phase II, after learning about fertility testing as part of the FUTURES curriculum, adolescent and young adult male participants are given the option to pursue testing. The two-phase study aims to: 1) develop and test the feasibility, acceptability, and efficacy of a reproductive health web-based educational program at increasing reproductive health knowledge in male adolescent and young adult males with sickle cell disease and their caregivers, and 2) assess feasibility of fertility testing. The long-term goal is to improve reproductive and psychosocial outcomes among adolescent and young adult males with sickle cell disease.

HIIT & RT or RT & HIIT: The order of stimulations alters acute hemodynamic response?

Background: The High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) has had space in social networks that disseminate its practice and also among practitioners of physical exercises in a global way. Objective: To verify if the stimuli order (HIIT-RT or RT-HIIT) changes the acute hemodynamic response. Methods: 10 young adult male participants aged between 18 and 30 years (24.7 ± 2.2). For the test protocols the High intensity interval training (HIIT) and the conventional resistance training (RT) were performed in Cross-over using a Spinning Exercise Bike in addition to the apparatus: Bench press; Leg Press; Pull down; Leg curl; Low Rower. The hemodynamic variables were collected at rest, post-training, and 10 ', 20' and 30 'minutes of recovery. Results: A significant difference was found in HR and SBP at the end of the training in the SBP and DBP variables there were significant differences in the 20' and 30' minutes and in the MAP there was a significant difference in all recovery times with RT and HIIT higher post-workout and recovery values. Conclusion: the stimuli order changes the acute hemodynamic response. When the orders were analyzed (HIIT-RT; RT-HIIT), the order that presented the best results was HIIT-RT. It presented changes during exercise as they presented better post-training responses.

Acute Exercise Protects Newly Formed Motor Memories Against rTMS-induced Interference Targeting Primary Motor Cortex

Acute cardiovascular exercise can promote motor memory consolidation following motor practice, and thus long-term retention, but the underlying mechanisms remain sparsely elucidated. Here we test the hypothesis that the positive behavioral effects of acute exercise involve the primary motor cortex and the corticospinal pathway by interfering with motor memory consolidation using non-invasive, low frequency, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS). Forty-eight able-bodied, young adult male participants (mean age = 24.8 y/o) practiced a visuomotor accuracy task demanding precise and fast pinch force control. Following motor practice, participants either rested or exercised (20 min total: 3 × 3 min at 90% VO2peak) before receiving either sham rTMS or supra-threshold rTMS (115% RMT, 1 Hz) targeting the hand area of the contralateral primary motor cortex for 20 min. Retention was evaluated 24 h following motor practice, and motor memory consolidation was operationalized as overnight changes in motor performance. Low-frequency rTMS resulted in off-line decrements in motor performance compared to sham rTMS, but these were counteracted by a preceding bout of intense exercise. These findings demonstrate that a single session of exercise promotes early motor memory stabilization and protects the primary motor cortex and the corticospinal system against interference.

A 1.6 mg/kg dose of epicatechin in a supplemented cocoa mixture yielded the largest acute decrease in food intake in humans

ObjectiveTo test the hypothesis that epicatechin doses of 1.6, 3.2 and 4.8 mg per kg of body weight in a non-alkalized cocoa beverage cause significant acute decreases in human appetite that increase with increasing dose. MethodsWe conducted a four-way randomized, crossover, placebo-controlled double-blinded human trial with 28 healthy, non-obese, young-adult male participants. Our primary measure of appetite was ad libitum pizza intake 150 min after beverage ingestion. We used linear mixed models analyses. ResultsCompared to our placebo, the beverages containing 1.6, 3.2 and 4.8 mg per kg of body weight caused mean decreases in pizza intake of 984.3 kJ (18.1%, p = .002), 588.0 kJ (10.8%, p = .06) and 623.2 kJ (11.4%, p = .049), respectively. There were no reported adverse side effects related to the ingested beverages. ConclusionsIn our randomized trial two doses of epicatechin larger than1.6 mg/kg did not cause larger acute decreases in pizza intake.

Acute short-term sleep deprivation does not affect metacognitive monitoring captured by confidence ratings: a systematic literature review

This article presents the results of a systematic review of the literature surrounding the effects that acute sleep deprivation has on metacognitive monitoring. Metacognitive monitoring refers to the ability to accurately assess one’s own performance and state of knowledge. The mechanism behind this assessment is captured by subjective feelings of confidence concerning the accuracy of our judgments or performance. These judgments influence decision behavior. How well these subjective feelings fit with reality is critical for good decision making. For example, a driver who is overconfident in their ability to remain vigilant after a night without sleep is at risk of having an accident. A learner who is overconfident in their ability to perform well on an exam without sleep is at risk of failing. A break down in metacognitive monitoring might be responsible for the increase in poor decision making observed when people are sleep deprived. Using defined search terms and exclusion criteria, electronic database searches identified ten empirical studies suitable for review. Participants in these studies completed performance-based tasks, typically cognitive, while remaining awake for 28–63 hours. In all studies, metacognitive monitoring was assessed via confidence ratings either pre-, on-, or post-task. Extended wakefulness had a significant negative effect on performance in most studies. Evidencing good monitoring, however, the monitoring estimates such as confidence also tended to decline. Moreover, two critical variables that assess the fit of these estimates to actual performance (bias and discrimination) were mostly unaffected by the number of hours awake. Still, some results indicated that these variables may be affected by substances intended to fight sleep deprivation, such as modafinil. Within the limitations of extant literature (e.g., a sampling bias towards young adult male participants), empirical observations to date converge to suggest that metacognitive monitoring remains largely unaffected by the examined quantities of acute sleep deprivation (up to 63 hours).

Is lower peripheral information weighted differently as a function of step number during step climbing?

The importance of peripheral visual information during stair climbing and how peripheral visual information is weighted as a function of step number during step climbing is unclear. Previous authors postulated that the knowledge of predictable characteristics of the steps may decrease reliance on foveal vision and transfer the online visual guidance of stair climbing to peripheral vision. Hence the aim of this study was to investigate if and how the occlusion of the lower peripheral visual field influenced stair climbing and if peripheral visual information was weighted differently between steps.Ten young adult male participants ascended a 5-step staircase under 2 visual conditions: full vision (FV) and lower visual occlusion (LO). Kinematic data (100Hz) were collected. The effect of Vision and Step condition on vertical forefoot clearance was examined with a Repeated Measures 2-way ANOVA. Tukey’s HSD test was used for post-hoc comparisons. A significant interaction Vision x Step and main effect of Step were found (p<=0.04): vertical forefoot clearance was greater in LO compared to FV condition only on the 1st and the 2nd steps (p<0.013) and on the last step compared to the other steps (p<0.01).These findings suggest that online peripheral visual information is more relevant when negotiating the first two steps, rather than the end of a staircase and that the steps subsequent the first few ones may require different information likely based on proprioception or working memory of the step height.

A scoping review of risk behaviour interventions in young men.

BackgroundYoung adult males commonly engage in risky behaviours placing them at risk of acute and chronic health conditions. The purpose of this scoping review was to provide an overview of existing literature, describing the interventions targeting risk behaviours in young adult males.MethodsA search of seven electronic databases, grey literature and relevant journals reported in English language until May 2013 was conducted. All interventions that promoted healthy behaviours or reductions in risky behaviours to treat or prevent an associated health issue(s) in young adult males (17-35 years) in upper-middle and high-income countries were included. For inclusion the appropriate age range had to be reported and the sample had to be young adult male participants only or the outcomes reported with stratification by age and/or sex to include young adult males. Risk behaviours included: physical inactivity, poor diet, alcohol use, tobacco smoking, recreational drug use, unsafe sexual behaviours, tanning/sun exposure, violence, unsafe vehicle driving, gambling and self-harm.ResultsThe search strategy identified 16,739 unique citations and the full-text of 1149 studies were retrieved and screened with 100 included studies focussed on: physical inactivity (27%), alcohol use (25%), unsafe sexual behaviour (21%), poor diet (5%), unsafe vehicle driving (5%), tobacco smoking (4%), recreational drug use (2%), and tanning/sun exposure (1%) with no relevant studies targeting violence, gambling or self-harm. Also 10% of the studies targeted multiple risk behaviours. The most common study design was randomized controlled trials (62%). Face-to-face was the most common form of intervention delivery (71%) and the majority were conducted in university/college settings (46%). There were 46 studies (46%) that included young adult male participants only, the remaining studies reported outcomes stratified by age and/or sex.ConclusionRisk behaviours in young men have been targeted to some extent, but the amount of research varies across risk behaviours. There is a need for more targeted and tailored interventions that seek to promote healthy behaviours or decrease risky behaviours in young men.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1471-2458-14-957) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Neural correlates of the empathic perceptual processing of realistic social interaction scenarios displayed from a first-order perspective

The neural processing of impulsive behavior is a central topic in various clinical and non-clinical contexts. To investigate neural and behavioral correlates of the empathic processing of complex social scenarios, especially considering ecological validity of the experimental procedure, we developed and investigated a video stimulus inventory. It includes realistic neutral, social-positive, and reactive–aggressive action scenarios. Short video-clips showing these social scenarios from a first-person perspective triggering different emotional states were presented to a non-clinical sample of 20 young adult male participants during fMRI measurements. Both affective interaction conditions (social-positive and reactive–aggressive) were contrasted against a neutral baseline condition and against each other. Behavioral evaluation data largely confirmed the validity of the emotion-inducing stimulus material. Reactive–aggressive and social-positive interaction scenarios produced widely overlapping fMRI activation patterns in hetero-modal association cortices, but also in subcortical regions, such as the peri-aqueductal gray. Reactive–aggressive compared to social-positive scenarios yielded a more anterior distribution of activations in pre-motor and inferior frontal brain regions associated to motor-preparation and inhibitory control processing as well as in the insula associated to pain- and/or aversion-processing. We argue that there are both principally common neural networks recruited for the processing of reactive–aggressive and social-positive scenarios, but also exclusive network parts in particular involved depending on individual socialization.

Temporal changes in the required shoe-floor friction when walking following an induced slip.

Biomechanical aspects of slips and falls have been widely studied to facilitate fall prevention strategies. Prior studies have shown changes in gait after an induced slipping event. As such, most researchers only slip participants one time to avoid such changes that would otherwise reduce the external validity of experimental results. The ability to slip participants more than once, after allowing gait to return to a natural baseline, would improve the experimental efficiency of such studies. Therefore, the goal of this study was to characterize the temporal changes in required shoe-floor friction when walking following an induced slip. Two experiments were completed, and each employed a different potential strategy to promote the return of gait to a natural baseline after slipping. In the first experiment, extended time away from the laboratory was used to promote the return of gait to baseline. We measured required coefficient-of-friction among 36 young adult male participants over four sessions. The first three sessions provided measurements during baseline (i.e., natural gait) both prior to slipping and immediately after slipping. The fourth session provided a measurement 1–12 weeks after slipping. In the second experiment, an extensive number of walking trials was used to promote the return of gait to baseline. We measured required coefficient-of-friction among 10 young adult male participants in a single session. Measurements were collected during 10 baseline walking trials, immediately after slipping, and during 50–55 additional trials. In both experiments, required coefficient-of-friction decreased 12–16% immediately after a single slip, increased toward baseline levels over subsequent weeks/walking trials, but remained statistically different from baseline at the end of the experiments. Based on these results, experiments involving slipping participants multiple times may not have a high level of external validity, and researchers are encouraged to continue to limit experimental protocols to a single induced slip per participant.

EMDR Treatment of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: Preliminary Research

This article reports the results of two experiments, each investigating a different eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) protocol for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and each with two young adult male participants with long-standing unremitting OCD. Two adaptations of Shapiro’s (2001) phobia protocol were developed, based on the theoretical view that OCD is a self-perpetuating disorder, with OCD compulsions and obsessions and current triggers reinforcing and maintaining the disorder. Both adaptations begin by addressing current obsessions and compulsions, instead of working on past memories; one strategy delays the cognitive installation phase; the other uses mental video playback in the desensitization of triggers. The four participants received 14–16 one-hour sessions, with no assigned homework. They were assessed with the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS), with scores at pretreatment in the extreme range (mean = 35.3). Symptom improvement was reported by participants after 2 or 3 sessions. Scores at posttreatment were in the subclinical/mild range for all participants (mean = 8.5). Follow-up assessments were conducted at 4–6 months, indicating maintenance of treatment effects (mean = 7.5). Symptom reduction was 70.4% at posttreatment and 76.1% at follow-up for the Adapted EMDR Phobia Protocol and 81.4% at posttreatment and at follow-up for the Adapted EMDR Phobia Protocol with Video Playback. Theoretical implications are discussed, and future research is recommended.

Nitrogen Balance Studies in Humans: Long-Term Effect of High Nitrogen Intake on Nitrogen Accretion

Six healthy young adult male participants were confined to a metabolic ward for 105 days. Two nutritionally adequate purified diets providing 12 and 36 g of nitrogen per day were randomized in two metabolic periods of approximately 50 days each. The objective of this study was to verify whether or not positive nitrogen balance is a concomitant of increased nitrogen intake under the most rigorously controlled conditions, and if so, whether adaptation could occur if the experiment was conducted for sufficiently long periods of time. The mean nitrogen balance was slightly negative for most participants when fed the 12 g N diet. However, individual variability was so large that statistically all the participants can be considered in balance. In view of this, we agree with other investigators who have suggested that balance should be considered as an area which takes into account variabilities such as intake, output and biological factors. On the 36 g N diet, all the participants exhibited strong positive balances, about 1.6 g/day, which were not as high as reported by other investigators but which persisted for as long as they were fed this diet. This positive balance could not seem to be explained on the basis of methodological errors or to any unmeasured nitrogen losses. There was no significant trend towards adaptation as claimed.