March 2003, Volume 9 No. 1

ARTICLE 3

Effect of Taking Chicken Essence on Stress and Cognition of Human Volunteers

Azhar Md. Zain¹ & Syed Mohsin Syed Sahil Jamalulail^2
1 Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Hospital Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Masjid, 50586 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

² School of Allied Health Sciences, USM, Kubang Kerian, 16150 Kota Bharu.

SUMMARY
Stress is a common phenomenon. Every individual experiences it. There are many ways of combating stress. Stress is necessary for preparation against challenging situations and danger. It is necessary to have stress before a test so that we are prepared. For instance, stress actually motivates students to prepare for examination but excessive stress can lead to poor performance. This study evaluates the effect of a commercial essence of chicken (CEC) on the various parameters related to stress and cognition of human volunteers. CEC is produced by a hot-water extraction process from chicken meat under high pressure condition. It contains concentrated amounts of proteins, amino acids and peptides such as carnosine compared to homemade traditional chicken soup. Due to the unique extraction process, it has been postulated that readily absorbed amino acids and bioactive peptides are present in CEC. In this experiment, we evaluated the effect of CEC in comparison with a placebo and carageenan on a group of stressed medical students before their examinations. Students were divided into three groups at random and given either CEC, placebo or a carageenan drink daily for two weeks. Before and after the two weeks, the students were given a series of tests to assess their mental and physical well-being as well as attention and memory. The tests were the general health questionnaire (GHQ), SF36, digit span, construction of figures, 3-min memory test, comprehension and mental arithmetic. The students who ingested essence of chicken fared significantly better than the other two groups of students. The ability of essence of chicken to control anxiety by distraction and promoting attention and memory is discussed.

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