Exploring the spatial mental associations of distinct food types.

Previous research explored the spatial representations of healthy low-calorie and unhealthy high-calorie food items, revealing an association of healthy low-calorie food with left and top sides, and unhealthy/high-calorie food with right and top sides. This association, namely side bias, was limited to these specific categories leaving the representations of healthy high-calorie and unhealthy low-calorie food categories yet to be explored. Present study was designed to examine the spatial representation of four food categories (unhealthy low-calorie, unhealthy high-calorie, healthy low-calorie, healthy high-calorie) using a computerized food placement task. In Experiment 1, participants placed four food items from different categories into eight locations. In Experiment 2, identical task was used with the addition of centrally presented anchor food item to investigate the mental representation of food items in relation to each other. The frequency of placing food items in specific spatial locations were measured. The results of Experiment 1 provided partial support for side bias. However, the use of anchor items in Experiment 2 provided compelling evidence for vertical side bias, demonstrating consistent pattern of placing healthy foods on the upper sides and unhealthy foods on the lower sides. In both experiments, real-life food choices were examined to investigate whether the high-calorie bias would be observed in actual food choice behavior. The results from both experiments indicated strong preference to select high-calorie foods, supporting high-calorie bias. Overall, this study extends the evidence on the spatial representations of distinct food categories.

Shear Wave Elastography of the Lumbar Multifidus Muscle in Patients With Unilateral Lumbar Disk Herniation.

OBJECTIVES: To assess lumbar multifidus muscle stiffness in patients with unilateral lumbar disk herniation (LDH) causing nerve root compression using shear wave elastography (SWE). METHODS: Thirty-three patients with unilateral subarticular LDH (L3-L4, L4-L5, and L5-S1) causing nerve root compression, diagnosed by magnetic resonance imaging, were enrolled in the study. Exclusion criteria were bilateral or multilevel LDH confirmed on magnetic resonance imaging, bilateral leg symptoms, and patients with a history of any spinal operation, malignancy, trauma, infection, spondylolisthesis, severe lateral recess stenosis, spinal canal stenosis, and substantial comorbidities. Two observers separately evaluated the multifidus muscle using SWE. Shear wave elastographic examinations of the muscle were performed slightly below the herniation using the spinous process of the vertebra as a landmark. The stiffness of the muscle between affected and normal sides was compared. Moreover, the correlation between the stiffness and duration of the symptoms and the correlation between the stiffness and severity of the nerve compression were also calculated. RESULTS: The mean stiffness values of the multifidus muscle on the affected side (mean ± SD: observer 1, 14.08 ± 3.57 kPa; observer 2, 13.70 ± 4.05 kPa) were significantly lower compared to the contralateral side (observer 1, 18.81 ± 3.95 kPa; observer 2, 18.28 ± 4.12 kPa; P < .001). The muscle stiffness had a moderate negative correlation with the duration of the symptoms and the severity of the nerve compression (observer 1, r = -0.535; observer 2, r = -0.458; P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: The multifidus muscle on the ipsilateral side of the LDH showed reduced stiffness values, and stiffness values were negatively correlated with the disease duration and severity of the nerve compression. Further studies might reveal the potential role of SWE of the multifidus muscle in determining clinical outcomes and assessing effectiveness treatment in patients with LDH.