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Can the human brain go into “Energy Saving” mode in the absence of food? Some researchers have managed to shed some light on this.
The brain is the most curious organ in the field of scientific research. It is not for less, since it is the one that allows us to manage our thoughts and emotions, among other things. Such is its complexity that after decades and decades of study, new studies keep coming out that help unmask it. Many times the help and analysis of other animals is needed to understand our own brain configuration. This is how many novelties are obtained.
Did you know that the brain has its own energy saving system? In comparative terms, it could be something similar to what happens in digital devices. This particular mode allows you to save power through lowering the screen brightness among other tweaks, right? This is exactly what our own body asks of us after checking how is the activity of the mice when exposed to lack of food. This is an experiment that was published on the science portal neuron.
So let’s see what this new discovery is, why it is a revolutionary proposal that can help to understand the evolution of societies on the planet and, of course, how far we are facing a practical solution of our brain It helps us save energy when we need it most. Here is one of the keys that was revealed very recently.
The human brain and its ability to save energy in certain situations
Given a lack of food from a certain person, you can probably see your ability to see reduced. This loss of the sense of sight may not be noticeable at first, but as the hours go by after a long period without eating, this effect will become more acute. This is due, above all, to lack of glucose sugar supply, which is essential for nourishing brain cells. In particular, this is converted into adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to fuel your information processing.
The brain is able to enter ‘Energy saving’ mode in the face of lack of food Quanta Magazine
The experiment, which was conducted with mice, showed how those who were exposed to certain starvation, had vision loss due to lack of nutrition. The brain, in these cases, entered an energy-saving mode in which the decrease in vision was intended to reduce consumption. In general, the rodents analyzed suffered a loss of about 15 to 20% of their weight in order to see where the brain behavior stemmed from.
According to the published study, it was possible to verify how neurons in the visual cortex reduced the amount of ATP used up to 29%. After subjecting these animals to this dietary restriction, it was possible to observe how the protagonists were more sensitive to sight-related failures, which determined that the sense of sight reduced their abilities.
These new findings can be used to understand how societies evolved depending on the food available and especially taking into account the evolution of certain sight-related problems. This connection also allows us to understand how there are still many problems in our brain that are beyond our understanding.
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