Presentation Type
Poster
Presentation Type
Submission
Keywords
Mindset, Metabolism, Gut Microbiome, Mental Health
Department
Nutritional Science
Major
BA Biology
Abstract
The Role of the "Indulgent Mindset" as a Modulator for Neuropsychiatric Biomarkers and Self-Reported Mental Wellbeing
Objective: Limited understanding persists regarding how an "indulgent mindset" about food shapes neuropsychiatric outcomes. Building on the "milkshake study" demonstrating that mindset modulates ghrelin response independent of nutritional content, this pilot study examines whether an indulgent mindset intervention affects neuropsychiatric biomarkers and mental wellbeing.
Methods: Women ages 19-65 (n=35; intervention n=17, control n=18) completed a 6-month randomized trial with baseline and post-intervention assessments including 3-day food diaries, mental wellbeing questionnaires, and comprehensive metabolomics (Iollo panel across mental health, metabolic health, gut microbiome, brain health, and inflammation domains). The intervention used monthly discussion sessions designed to cultivate an indulgent food mindset (Edgy Veggies Toolkit). Repeated-measures mixed-effects models tested Time × Group interactions for each metabolite, with Benjamini-Hochberg false discovery rate correction applied.
Results: Primary psychological outcomes showed modest effects on healthy eating mindsets. Exploratory metabolomic screening (377 metabolite tests) revealed nominal signals (p< 0.05) concentrated exclusively in Metabolic Health (12/292 metabolites), including Hexosylceramide(d18:1/16:0) (p=0.007) and Phosphatidylcholine aa C34:2 (p=0.015). No nominal signals appeared in other domains. Critically, no metabolites survived FDR correction (all q≥0.897).
Conclusions: Nominal signals in Metabolic Health represent exploratory, hypothesis-generating findings requiring replication. The absence of FDR-corrected findings precludes definitive mechanistic conclusions. Larger confirmatory studies are needed to determine whether mindset interventions reliably affect metabolic biomarkers.
Faculty Mentor
Susan Helm
Funding Source or Research Program
Undergraduate Research Fellowship
Location
Waves Cafeteria
Start Date
10-4-2026 1:00 PM
End Date
10-4-2026 2:00 PM
Included in
Biochemical Phenomena, Metabolism, and Nutrition Commons, Neurology Commons, Psychiatry Commons
The Role of the "Indulgent Mindset" as a Modulator for Neuropsychiatric Biomarkers and Self-Reported Mental Wellbeing
Waves Cafeteria
The Role of the "Indulgent Mindset" as a Modulator for Neuropsychiatric Biomarkers and Self-Reported Mental Wellbeing
Objective: Limited understanding persists regarding how an "indulgent mindset" about food shapes neuropsychiatric outcomes. Building on the "milkshake study" demonstrating that mindset modulates ghrelin response independent of nutritional content, this pilot study examines whether an indulgent mindset intervention affects neuropsychiatric biomarkers and mental wellbeing.
Methods: Women ages 19-65 (n=35; intervention n=17, control n=18) completed a 6-month randomized trial with baseline and post-intervention assessments including 3-day food diaries, mental wellbeing questionnaires, and comprehensive metabolomics (Iollo panel across mental health, metabolic health, gut microbiome, brain health, and inflammation domains). The intervention used monthly discussion sessions designed to cultivate an indulgent food mindset (Edgy Veggies Toolkit). Repeated-measures mixed-effects models tested Time × Group interactions for each metabolite, with Benjamini-Hochberg false discovery rate correction applied.
Results: Primary psychological outcomes showed modest effects on healthy eating mindsets. Exploratory metabolomic screening (377 metabolite tests) revealed nominal signals (p< 0.05) concentrated exclusively in Metabolic Health (12/292 metabolites), including Hexosylceramide(d18:1/16:0) (p=0.007) and Phosphatidylcholine aa C34:2 (p=0.015). No nominal signals appeared in other domains. Critically, no metabolites survived FDR correction (all q≥0.897).
Conclusions: Nominal signals in Metabolic Health represent exploratory, hypothesis-generating findings requiring replication. The absence of FDR-corrected findings precludes definitive mechanistic conclusions. Larger confirmatory studies are needed to determine whether mindset interventions reliably affect metabolic biomarkers.