"Instant Attention!....

...Just Add Acetylcholine!"

A lot has been said in my previous posts about the medical reasons behind the typically short human attention span. Most of the studies I have found trace the origins of attention back to the brain. This makes sense considering the brain is the organ of the body which controls practically everything you do, from breathing, to sleeping, to picking what clothes you want to wear in the morning. While most studies agree that the brain controls what you pay attention to, none have made such specific claims as new research recently published in the scientific journal Nature. 

In an article titled "Acetylcholine Contributes Through Muscarinic Receptors to Attention Modulation V1," researchers from Newcastle University present convincing evidence that in order to pay attention to something, a specific chemical within the brain must first be released. 

"We all know that in life we sometimes are not paying attention to tasks or the world around us. Our research shows that to have full attention and awareness the neurons and specific receptors in the brain require a dose of acetylcholine to get them into the correct state. When this happens correctly the brain has higher levels of attention and has increased awareness of the task an individual is attempting to solve" explains research leader Alex Thiele.

The Newcastle team tested their theories about the natural neurotransmitter acetylcholine by organizing an experiment using monkeys. The team presented a monkey with a task, first with no additional acetylcholine administered, to act as a control. Then, the monkey was presented with the same task, but was given a dose of the neurotransmitter just before. The team observed that the areas of the brain that correspond with awareness and attentiveness were more responsive than in the control case. Finally, a monkey was presented with the same task, but the neurotransmitter was blocked within the brain. A visible reduction in activity in the same areas of the brain which were enhanced with extra acetylcholine was observed.

The next step for the team is more testing and research to further hone in on the effects and possibilities of this chemical as it relates to human attention span. This could lead to potential breakthroughs in treatment of neurological disorders which are associated with lack of attention and awareness. 

"If these mechanisms are not working properly then, most of the time, it means we have to re-read an article or we will miss something somebody says. Many of these processes in the brain have a role in conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, attention deficit disorders and other attention deficits. It will require more research but I hope that this work might be able to help sufferers in the future," notes Thiele.

This is surely promising research, and I am excited personally by the hope it brings towards finding a cure for Alzheimer's, which I have experienced within my family. However, I will reserve my judgement about the value of the research for two reasons.

My first skepticism is in the actual research. This was a reputable study carried out by professional scientists, and published in a widely distributed and highly regarded scientific journal. I have no doubt they followed the scientific method to a "T." What I do doubt, however, are the methods by which these researchers quantify "the amount of attention" a test subject was showing towards a task.

Certain areas of the brain may show more activity, but there is no concrete way of knowing if this increased activity corresponds to increased attention without asking the test subject. The problem here is that human testing is not practical at this point early in the research, and no matter how cool it would be, we can't talk to monkeys to see how they're feeling.

My second reason for questioning this research is not one of science, but one of morality. Surely no one can argue that curing Alzheimer's disease would be a clear-cut "win" for society. However if this research eventually led to the development of a pill which released controlled amounts of acetylcholine into the brain to increase and enhance attention span, there is no doubt it would be over-prescribed by doctors who are currently over-diagnosing children with attention deficit and related disorders. I would not be morally comfortable knowing that a pill existed which offered "instant attention" because it could potentially alter the personalities of those who were prescribed the medication. I think there still should be more value placed in the ability of a person - child or adult - to overcome a lack of attention span by hard work and perseverance. Surely there are some who would qualify medically for the new medication, much like there are many people today who truly do suffer from ADD and do benefit from medications such as Ritalin. But it is undeniable that in today's society, a quick fix pill that may seem too good to be true, probably is.