
Self-control need a boost? Gargle sugar water, researchers say - jamesbritt
http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/health/2012/11/09/self-control-need-boost-gargle-sugar-water-researchers-say/4Fw3dY48OJNUmSgrSNU0pI/story.html
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nnq
Tip: weak green tea with sugar (or white or black tea if it's more to your
taste) - the added low dose theanine and caffeine amplify the benefits of low
dose sugar (assuming you're not already ODing on coffee or other caffeinated
thing) ...sipping it slowly while slogging through some "hard to swallow" but
attention demanding task does wonders.

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verroq
Don't do this if you value your teeth (or maybe rinse out after).

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crb3
Sounds like a plug for sugared chewing gum.

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omarqazi
I guess that explains all the soda cans around my room after a long coding
session.

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cskau
I wonder what effect this will have on your teeth over time. Any insight?

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apetresc
Does it need to be gargled? If I'm following the reasoning of the article
correctly, simply consuming sugary food should have the same effect. Am I
misunderstanding?

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vidarh
That consuming small amounts of sugar regularly boosts motivation and
willpower has been known for a long time, but as the article says the
assumption has been that this is due to the actual intake of sugar. What they
are saying is that they think their results may show that simply _tasting_ the
sugar is sufficient.

(But I wonder if they controlled for whatever amounts of sugar subjects might
inadvertently get in them anyway while gargling)

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enginous
"Because participants did not ingest the glucose, they could not have absorbed
a significant amount of it into their bloodstream. Moreover, it takes glucose
10 to 15 min to enter the brain after ingestion (Zourek, Jankovec, & Hykova,
2011)."

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jvdh
How is performing faster on a tedious task related to self-control? Shouldn't
that be "improve focus" or "improve concentration"?

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Daniel_Newby
Elective control of concentration _is_ self control.

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drivebyacct2
(Possibly naive question) Is that considered strictly _elective_ control? I
mean, I suppose I can assume I will always have access to sugar water so I'm
electing to trick my body.

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joonix
Isn't gargling sugar still consuming sugar? Digestion of simple carbohydrates
begins in the mouth with saliva.

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MDS100
No, they get broken down, but do not enter the bloodstream. The sugar
molecules bind to receptors to give you the sweet taste.

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001sky
If gargling XYZ is too fussy, An apple works.

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huggah
Self-control need a stall? Gargle artificially-sweetened water, researchers
say.

Sorry, the article is behind a pay wall. The summary does nothing to impress
me.

