Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Does melatonin have an effect on cognitive performance?

H A Slotten1, S Krekling

  • 1Department of Psychology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway. helge.slotten@sv.ntnu.no

Psychoneuroendocrinology
|November 1, 1996
PubMed
Summary

Melatonin does not directly impair cognitive function. However, cognitive processing speed slows during the body temperature trough following melatonin intake, likely due to its hypothermic effects.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Entrainment of rat circadian rhythms by melatonin does not depend on the serotonergic afferents to the suprachiasmatic nuclei.

Brain research·2000
Same author

Influence of the mode of daily melatonin administration on entrainment of rat circadian rhythms.

Journal of biological rhythms·1999
Same author

Directional biases in adults' performance on a multiple-choice water-level task.

Perceptual and motor skills·1994
Same author

Observational training improves adult womens' performance on Piaget's water-level task.

Scandinavian journal of psychology·1992
Same author

Tactual learning and cross-modal transfer of an oddity problem in young children.

Journal of experimental child psychology·1989
Same author

Spatial summation in subregions of simple-cell receptive fields in cat striate cortex as a function of slit length.

The Journal of physiology·1984

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Chronobiology
  • Cognitive Psychology

Background:

  • Melatonin is known to influence circadian rhythms, body temperature, and induce sleepiness.
  • The direct impact of melatonin on cognitive performance remains a subject of debate.
  • Understanding melatonin's cognitive effects is crucial for its therapeutic applications.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the effects of exogenous melatonin on cognitive performance during daytime.
  • To differentiate between the direct effects of melatonin and its indirect effects via body temperature changes.
  • To assess cognitive function at specific time points relative to melatonin peak and body temperature trough.

Main Methods:

  • A double-blind, placebo-controlled, alternating treatments design was employed with N=1 participant.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Cognitive performance was assessed using logical reasoning, serial add/subtract, visual-spatial, and reaction time tasks.
  • Serum melatonin levels and core body temperature were monitored alongside cognitive testing.

    • Main Results:

    • Cognitive performance (speed and accuracy) was unaffected during the peak serum melatonin levels.
    • Reaction times on all cognitive tasks significantly increased during the body temperature trough.
    • These findings suggest melatonin's effects on cognition are mediated by its hypothermic properties.

    Conclusions:

    • Circulating melatonin does not exert a direct, immediate effect on cortical information processing.
    • The observed decrease in cognitive processing speed is linked to melatonin-induced hypothermia.
    • Melatonin's impact on cognitive speed appears to be a consequence of reduced cerebral processing speed due to lower body temperature.