Research Interests
The overarching research goals within the Exercise Physiology Laboratory are to seek nutritional and exercise interventions that can improve human health, well-being, and performance. Our group has been particularly focused on the importance of hydration to delay fatigue and maintain safety during exercise, especially in conditions of heat stress. The physiological responses and efficacy of specific interventions related to nutrient composition and dosage (e.g. during and following physical activity) have been studied. Health and work performance issues that relate to body fluid balance and provision of optimal macronutrients have implications for a variety of populations during exercise that may be specific to fitness level, age, and gender.
Research Opportunities
Undergraduate students (following completion of APPH 4100 or other APPH certificate classes) and graduate students who are interested in exercise physiology may assist with various ongoing research projects. In addition, we frequently recruit students as participants in exercise physiology studies.
Current Research Projects
- Dehydration and Exercise – Heat stress effects on brain structure, function, and neuromotor performance
- Development of sensor technology for wearable joint health assessment
- Hydration Status during Daily Living: Influence of Gender and Environment
- Ergogenicity of Caffeine and Carbohydrate: Effect on Metabolism and Performance
- Mechanisms Underlying Variability in Human Sweat Sodium and Implications on Fluid and Electrolyte Balance during Exercise in the Heat
In The News
Georgia Tech Game Changers: Invesco QQQ/GT Athletics Video Series – 2022-23
Study finds dehydration affects our brains – Fox 5 Atlanta
Dehydration may muddle your thinking – Reuters, July 2018
Off your mental game? You could be mildly dehydrated – NPR, July 2018
Even 2 hours of dehydration can affect your body and brain – Healthline, July 2018
Suffering brain fog? You might not be getting enough of this – Women’s Health, July 2018
Recent Publications
- Yaldiz C.O., K.L. Richardson, S.An, D.J. Lin, A. Satish, M. Buller, M. L. Millard-Stafford, M. N. Sawka, A. Medda, O. T. Inan. Early Prediction of Impending Exertional Heat Stroke with Wearable Multimodal Sensing and Anomaly Detection. IEEE Journal of Biomedical and Health Informatics, Dec 2023, in press. 10.1109/JBHI.2023.3323014
- Penna, E.M., A. Harp, B. Hack, T.N. Talik, and M. L. Millard-Stafford. Guarana (Paullinia cupana) but not Low-Dose Caffeine Improves Cycling Time-Trial Performance Versus Placebo. International Journal of Sports Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, Oct 28:1-8, 2023
- Hack, B., Penna, E. M., Talik, T., Chandrashekhar, R., & Millard-Stafford, M. (2023). Effect of Guarana (Paullinia cupana) on Cognitive Performance: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Nutrients, 15(2), 434. doi: 10.3390/nu15020434
- Balog, E., H Suh, M. Golloshi, and M. Millard-Stafford. Individual Variability Is More Important Than Analytical Methods When Calculating Relative Speed of Beverage Bioavailability. International Journal of Sports Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, doi: 10.1123/ijsnem.2022-0131. Print 2023 Mar 1. PMID: 36495873.
- Conger, S.A., Tuthill, L.M. and M.L. Millard-Stafford. Does Caffeine Increase Fat Metabolism? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Submitted to International Journal of Sports Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, 2022 Dec 10;33(2):112-120, doi: 10.1123/ijsnem.2022-0131. Print 2023 Mar 1
- Millard-Stafford, M.L. and J. Cantwell. Navigating a medical mystery in an elite athlete-severe dystonia induced by swimming. Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings, July 7, 2022. DOI:10.1080/08998280.2022.2090827
- Ainsworth, B., Garber C.E., Hubel, M., Millard-Stafford, M., Panton, L., and Swan P. Preeminent Women in Exercise Physiology and Their Contributions to Title IX. Women in Sport and Physical Activity Journal, 30 (2):89-96, 2022.
- Williamson-Reisdorf, C., E. Bechke, C. McLester, R .Buresh, M. Millard-Stafford, Z. Green, R. Rooks, B.S. Nickerson, K.Hayes, B. M. Kliszczewicz. Carbohydrate Rinse Fails to Enhance Cycling Performance but Alters Metabolic and Autonomic Recovery in Recreational Cyclists. Journal of Human Kinetics, 83, 109-119, 2022.
- Millard-Stafford, M., T. Snow, M. Jones, and H-G. Suh. The Beverage Hydration Index: Influence of Electrolytes, Carbohydrate and Protein. Nutrients, 13:2933-2949, 2021.
- An, S., A. Medda, M.N. Sawka, C.J. Hutto, M. L. Millard-Stafford, S. Appling, K. Richardson, and O.T. Inan, AdaptNet: Human Activity Recognition via Bilateral Domain Adaptation using Semi-Supervised Deep Translation Networks, IEEE Sensors Journal, 21(8): September 2021.
- Kumar, N., G. Warren, T. Snow, and M. Millard-Stafford. Caffeine Ingestion With or Without Low-Dose Carbohydrate Improves Exercise Tolerance in Sedentary Adults, Frontiers in Nutrition, 6:1-9, 2019.
- Wittbrodt, M.T., and M. Millard-Stafford. Dehydration Impairs Cognitive Performance: A Meta-Analysis. Medicine Science in Sports and Exercise, 50(11):2360-2368, 2018. doi: 10.1249/MSS.0000000000001682. PMID:29933347.
- Wittbrodt, M.T., M.N. Sawka, J.C. Mizelle, L.A. Wheaton, and M.L. Millard-Stafford. Exercise-Heat Stress with and without Water Replacement Alters Brain Structure and Impairs Visual-Motor Performance, Physiological Reports, 6(16):e13805, 2018. doi: 10.14814/phy2.13805. PMID:30136401
- Millard-Stafford, M., A.E. Swanson, and M.T. Wittbrodt. Nature vs. Nurture: Have Performance Gaps Between Men and Women Reached an Asymptote? International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance, 50(11):2360-2368, 2018.
- Omer T. Inan, D.C. Whittingslow, C.N. Teague, S. Hersek, M.B. Pouya, M. Millard-Stafford, G.F. Kogler, and M.N. Sawka. Wearable Knee Health System Employing Novel Physiological Biomarkers, Journal of Applied Physiology, 124(3):537-547, 2018. doi: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00366.2017. Epub 2017 Jul 27.PMID:28751371
- Hersek, S., M.B. Pouyan, C.N. Teague, M.N. Sawka, M.L. Millard-Stafford, G.F. Kogler, P.Wolkoff, and O.T. Inan. Acoustical Emission Analysis by Unsupervised Graph Mining: A Novel Biomarker of Knee Health Status, IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 65(6):1291-1300, 2018. doi: 10.1109/TBME.2017.2743562. PMID:28858782
- Hersek, S., H. Töreyin, C.N. Teague, M. Millard-Stafford, H. Jeong, M.M.Bavare, M.N. Sawka, and O.T. Inan. Wearable Vector Electrical Bioimpedance System to Assess Knee Joint Health, IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 64(10):2353-2360, 2017.
- Frost, A.P., T.N.Giest, A.A. Ruta, T.K. Snow, and M. Millard-Stafford. Limitations of Body Mass Index for Counseling Individuals with Unilateral Lower Extremity Amputation, Prosthetics and Orthotics International, 4(2):186-193, 2017. DOI: 10.1177/0309364616650079
- Teague, C.N., S. Hersek, H. Toreyin, M. Millard-Stafford, M.L. Jones, G.F. Kogler, M.N. Sawka, and O.T. Inan. Novel Methods for Sensing Acoustical Emissions From the Knee for Wearable Joint Health Assessment. IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 63(8): 1581-1590, 2016.
- Collier, N.B., M.A. Hardy , M. Millard-Stafford, and G.L. Warren. Small Beneficial Effect of Caffeinated Energy Drink Ingestion on Strength, Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 30(7):1862-1870, 2016.
- Kumar, N., L.A. Wheaton, T.K. Snow and M. Millard-Stafford. Carbohydrate Ingestion but not Mouth Rinse Maintains Sustained Attention when Fasted. Physiology and Behavior. 153:33-39, 2016.
- Wittbrodt, M.T., M. Millard-Stafford, R. A. Sherman, C.C. Cheatham. Fluid Replacement Attenuates Physiological Strain Resulting from Mild Hypohydration without Impacting Cognitive Performance. International Journal of Sports Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, 25:439-447, 2015.
- Wittbrodt, M.T., Espinoza, S, and M. Millard-Stafford. Biological Variation of Plasma Osmolality Obtained with Capillary Versus Venous Blood. Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, 53(10):1613-1619, 2015.
- Kumar, N., T.K. Snow, L.A. Wheaton, and M. Millard-Stafford. Exercise and Caffeine Improve Sustained Attention following Fatigue Independent of Fitness Status, Fatigue: Biomedicine, Health & Behavior, 3(2):104-121, 2015.
- Capranica, L., M.F. Piacentini, S. Halson, K. Myburgh, E. Ogasawara, and M. Millard-Stafford. The Gender Gap in Sport Performance: Equity Influences Equality. International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance, 8:99-103, 2013.
- Millard-Stafford, M., J. S. Becasen, M. W. Beets, A. J. Nihiser, S.M. Lee, J. E. Fulton. Is Physical Fitness Associated with Health in Overweight and Obese Youth? A Systematic Review. Kinesiology Reviews, 2:233-247, 2013.
- Millard-Stafford, M, D.M. Wendland, N.K. O’Dea, and T.L. Norman. Thirst and Hydration Status in Everyday Life. Nutrition Reviews, 70(11): S147-151, 2012.
- Kressler, J., M. Millard-Stafford, and. G.W. Warren. Quercetin improves endurance exercise capacity: a meta-analysis. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 43(12):2396-2404, 2011.
- Millard-Stafford, M. and L. Capranica. Youth Sport Specialization: How to Manage Competition and Training? International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance, 6(4):572-579, 2011.
- Conger, S.A., G.L. Warren, M. Hardy, and M.L. Millard-Stafford. Caffeine Co-ingested with Carbohydrate: Additional Ergogenic Effect for Endurance? International Journal of Sports Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism. 21:71-84, 2011.
- Brown, M.B., K. V. Haack, B. Pollack, M. Millard-Stafford, and N. McCarty. Low abundance of sweat duct Cl- channel CFTR in both healthy and cystic fibrosis athletes with exceptionally salty sweat during exercise Amer. J. Physiology: Regul. Integ. Compar. Physiol, 300(3):605-615, 2011.
- Brown, M. B., N. McCarty, and M. L. Millard-Stafford. High Sweat Sodium in Cystic Fibrosis Patients and Healthy Individuals: Effect on Thirst During Progressive Dehydration from Exercise in the Heat. Amer. J. Physiology: Regul. Integ. Compar. Physiol, 301:R1177-1185, 2011.
- Millard-Stafford, M., M.B. Brown, T.K. Snow, and M.R. Casner. Acute Carbohydrate Ingestion Affects Lactate Response in Highly-Trained Swimmers. International Journal of Sports Physiology, 5(1):42-54, 2010.
- Warren, G. L., N.D. Park, R.D. Maresca, K.I. McKibans, and M.L. Millard-Stafford. Effect of Caffeine on Muscular Strength and Endurance: A Meta-analysis. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 42:1375-1387, 2010.
- Best, T.M., R. R. Pate, A. Hutber, M.L. Millard-Stafford, J.M. Pivarnik. Lessons Learned from Around the Worlds: ACSM Global Promotion of Innovation in Physical Activity and Health. Journal of Physical Activity and Health, 7(3):S361-S362, November 2010.
- Brown, M.B., A. Allison, M. Millard-Stafford. Running-specific prostheses permit energy cost similar to nonamputees. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 41:1080-1087, 2009
As President of American College of Sports Medicine, Dr. Millard-Stafford rang the closing bell on NASDAQ (May 9, 2009).