Dr

Neil

Boyle

School of Psychology

Research Fellow

Neil Boyle looks directly to camera, wearing a rollneck jumper against a neutral backdrop

n.boyle@sheffield.ac.uk

ICOSS Building

Full contact details

Dr Neil Boyle
School of Psychology
ICOSS Building

219 Portobello

Sheffield

S1 4DP

Qualifications

PhD Psychology
BSc (Hons) Psychology
Adv. Dip. Learning Disabilities Nursing

Research interests: I am a biological psychologist interested in the relationships between stress, cognition and health; the effects of stress on eating behaviour; and potential for nutrients and diet to moderate stress vulnerability. I also have an interest in the promotion of healthy, sustainable diets, the impacts of food insecurity, and population health.

Publications

Journal articles

Armstrong B, Dye L & Bernard BN (2026) The meat of the matter: demographic characteristics, food-related concerns, perceptions and motivations associated with meat analogue consumption in the UK. Food Chemistry, 525(Part 3). View this article in WRRO
Boyle NB, Armstrong B, Buckland NJ, Lane L, Caton SJ, Reynolds C, Vogel C & Dye L (2026) It's bean too long: Interventions to reintroduce legumes to the UK palate and plate. Annals of Applied Biology, 189(1).
Wilkinson N, Tann E, Boyle N, Caton S, McColl V, Croden F, Singh Lalli G & Dye L (2025) The children may not be the problem: evidence of acceptance and enjoyment of higher fibre breads from choice architecture studies in school breakfast clubs. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 380(1935). View this article in WRRO
Boyle N, Dye L & Seal CJ (2025) The need and strategies for increasing whole-grain intake - a narrative review focussed on the UK and Ireland. British Journal of Nutrition. View this article in WRRO
Wilkinson NM, Niaz T, Tann E, Croden F, Boyle NB, Mackie A & Dye L (2025) Novel fibre-rich breads yield improved glucose release curves and are well accepted by children in primary school breakfast clubs. Nutrients, 17(2). View this article in WRRO
Dalile B, Boyle NB, Ruiz FT, Chakrabarti A, Respondek F, Dodd GF, Kadosh KC, Hepsomali P, Brummer RJ, McArthur S , Dam V et al (2025) Targeting cognitive resilience through prebiotics: a focused perspective. Advances in Nutrition, 16(1). View this article in WRRO
Boyle NB, Jenneson V, Okeke-Ogbuafor N, Morris MA, Stead SM, Dye L, Halford JCG & Banwart SA (2024) Connected food: first steps for an ambitious national food strategy. Nutrients, 16(19). View this article in WRRO
Tann E, Dye L, Boyle N & Adolphus K (2024) OC220 - Nutrition and health claims on fibre; consumer perceptions, understanding and behaviour. Nutrition Society Congress 2024. View this article in WRRO
Shaw N, Hardman CA, Boyle NB, Craven J, Dooley J, Mead BR, Morgans L, Mumby H & Pettinger C (2024) What does ‘co-production’ look like for food system transformation? Mapping the evidence across Transforming UK Food Systems (TUKFS) projects. Nutrition Bulletin, 49(3), 345-359. View this article in WRRO
Boyle NB, Adolphus K, Caton SJ, Croden FC, Dye L, Glass A, Halliwell K, Hansen GL, Holm L, Jackson P , Makinwa F et al (2023) Increasing fibre intake in the UK: lessons from the Danish Whole Grain Partnership. British Journal of Nutrition, 1-14. View this article in WRRO
Dyson E, Helbig R, Avermaete T, Halliwell K, Calder PC, Brown LR, Ingram J, Popping B, Verhagen H, Boobis AR , Guelinckx I et al (2023) Impacts of the Ukraine–Russia conflict on the global food supply chain and building future resilience. EuroChoices, 22(1), 14-19. View this article in WRRO
Boyle NB & Power M (2023) Proxy longitudinal indicators of household food insecurity in the UK. Emerald Open Research, 1(10). View this article in WRRO
Boyle NB & Power M (2023) Proxy longitudinal indicators of household food insecurity in the UK. Emerald Open Research, 1(10). View this article in WRRO
Boyle NB, Dye L, Lawton CL & Billington J (2022) A combination of green tea, rhodiola, magnesium, and B vitamins increases electroencephalogram theta activity during attentional task performance under conditions of induced social stress. Frontiers in Nutrition, 9. View this article in WRRO
Boyle NB, Billington J, Lawton C, Quadt F & Dye L (2022) A combination of green tea, rhodiola, magnesium and B vitamins modulates brain activity and protects against the effects of induced social stress in healthy volunteers. Nutritional Neuroscience, 25(9), 1845-1859. View this article in WRRO
Jackson P, Cameron D, Rolfe S, Dicks LV, Leake J, Caton S, Dye L, Young W, Choudhary S, Evans D , Adolphus K et al (2021) Healthy soil, healthy food, healthy people: an outline of the H3 project. Nutrition Bulletin, 46(4), 497-505. View this article in WRRO
Dye L, Billington J, Lawton C & Boyle N (2020) A combination of magnesium, B vitamins, green tea and rhodiola attenuates the negative effects of acute psychosocial stress on subjective state in adults. Current Developments in Nutrition, 4(Suppl 2). View this article in WRRO
Boyle N, Billington J, Lawton C & Dye L (2020) Un traitement combiné de magnésium, vitamines B, rhodiola et thé vert améliore l’humeur subjective et le bien-être durant un stress aigu : résultats préliminaires d’un essai contrôlé randomisé contre placebo. Nutrition Clinique et Métabolisme, 34(1), 69-69.
Boyle NB, Dye L, Arkbåge K, Thorell L, Frederiksen P, Croden F & Lawton C (2019) Effects of milk-based phospholipids on cognitive performance and subjective responses to psychosocial stress: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in high-perfectionist men. Nutrition, 57, 183-193. View this article in WRRO
Boyle N, Lawton C & Dye L (2018) The effects of carbohydrates, in isolation and combined with caffeine, on cognitive performance and mood—current evidence and future directions. Nutrients, 10(2). View this article in WRRO
Dye L, Boyle NB, Champ C & Lawton C (2017) The relationship between obesity and cognitive health and decline. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, 76(4), 443-454. View this article in WRRO
Boyle N, Lawton C & Dye L (2017) The effects of magnesium supplementation on subjective anxiety and stress—a systematic review. Nutrients, 9(5). View this article in WRRO
Boyle NB, Lawton CL & Dye L (2016) The effects of magnesium supplementation on subjective anxiety. Magnesium Research, 29(3), 120-125. View this article in WRRO
Boyle NB, Newens K, Allen R, Lawton CL & Dye L (2016) Rinsing, independent of energy and metabolism, improves ego depleted self-control performance. Appetite, 101, 228-229. View this article in WRRO
Hamer M, Dye L, Siobhan Mitchell E, Layé S, Saunders C, Boyle N, Schuermans J & Sijben J (2016) Examining techniques for measuring the effects of nutrients on mental performance and mood state. European Journal of Nutrition, 55(6), 1991-2000.
Boyle NB, Lawton CL, Allen R, Croden F, Smith K & Dye L (2016) No effects of ingesting or rinsing sucrose on depleted self-control performance. Physiology & Behavior, 154, 151-160.
Boyle NB, Lawton C, Arkbåge K, West SG, Thorell L, Hofman D, Weeks A, Myrissa K, Croden F & Dye L (2016) Stress responses to repeated exposure to a combined physical and social evaluative laboratory stressor in young healthy males. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 63, 119-127.
Boyle NB, Lawton C, Arkbage K, Thorell L & Dye L (2013) Dreading the boards: stress response to a competitive audition characterized by social-evaluative threat. Anxiety, Stress & Coping, 26(6), 690-699.
Mushtaq F, Hill LJB, Bland AR, Craddock M & Boyle NB () Commentary: Neural correlates of expected risks and returns in risky choice across development. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 9.

Book chapters

Dye L, Lamport D, Boyle N & Hoyland A (2011) Macronutrients and cognitive performance, Lifetime Nutritional Influences on Cognition, Behaviour and Psychiatric Illness (pp. 131-159). Elsevier
Benton D, Isaacs EB, Lucas A, Schuchardt JP, Hahn A, Black MM, Osendarp SJM, Eilander A, Skeaff SA, Dye L , Lamport D et al (2011) Contributor contact details, Lifetime Nutritional Influences on Cognition, Behaviour and Psychiatric Illness (pp. xiii-xvii). Elsevier

Conference proceedings

Tann E, Dye L, Boyle N & Adolphus K (2024) Nutrition and health claims on fibre; consumer perceptions, understanding and behavior. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, Vol. 83(OCE4). Belfast, Northern Ireland, 2 July 2024 - 2 July 2024. View this article in WRRO
Boyle N, Larcombe F, Adolphus K, Wilkinson N, Croden F & Dye L (2024) Meeting UK fibre intake recommendations in food insecure households: the availability of fibre from redistributed surplus food. Proceedings, Vol. 91(1). Belgrade, Serbia, 14 November 2023 - 14 November 2023. View this article in WRRO
Wilkinson NM, Adolphus K, Coote S, Goldman O, Boyle N & Dye L (2024) How can we encourage primary school children to choose and consume high-fibre breakfast products?. Proceedings, Vol. 91(1). Belgrade, Serbia, 14 November 2023 - 14 November 2023. View this article in WRRO
Boyle N (2006) Managing foreign direct investment risks. WMSCI 2006: 10TH WORLD MULTI-CONFERENCE ON SYSTEMICS, CYBERNETICS AND INFORMATICS, VOL VI, PROCEEDINGS (pp 319-325)

Research group

Neuroscience and Cognition

Psychological Health

Grants

2025 National Alternative Protein Innovation Centre – Mind the Gap: differences in policy frameworks, nomenclature and consumer acceptance of alternative proteins. (Co-I): £43,696.
2024 UKRI - Adapting to Climate-induced Food Price Shocks in the UK: Climateflation. (Co-PI): £1,999,837
2023 UKRI (Transforming UK Food Systems strategic priorities fund): Synergy projects: Co-production of research for food systems transformation. (Co-I): £64,497
2022 Research England Policy Support Fund: Leeds City Council policy-based secondment funding. Evidence-based Policy Secondment: Delivering the Leeds Food Strategy. (PI): £14,487.
2022 BBSRC - Transforming the UK Food System Programme Flexibility Fund: Using slow cookers to increase fibre intake in disadvantaged communities. (PI): £9,975
2021 BBSRC – Knowledge Exchange Mini Project: Engaging with hard to reach populations. (Researcher Co-I): £9,898.
2020 UKRI – Strategic Priorities Fund Transforming the UK Food System programme grant: Healthy soil, Healthy food, Healthy people (H3): (Researcher Co-I). 2021-2026, £6,144,270.
2020 Industrial Sponsor (Sanofi Aventis): Development of a measure of the cognitive sequelae of headache. (Researcher Co-I): £426, 065
2019 BBSRC - Diet Research Industry Club: Short-term scientific or industrial missions (STSIMs). Diet & Health Seeding Award. (Researcher Co-I): £5,140
2018 N8 Agrifood Local Pump Priming Award: Understanding the risks to existing food supplies at the city level. (PI): £8,500. Collaborative project with University of Sheffield, University of Liverpool, & Lancaster University.
2017 N8 Agrifood Strategic Pump Priming Award: People to Food, Food to People: towards integrating access to food for older people into planning, transport policy and community services. (Co-I): £24,200. Collaborative project with Newcastle University, University of Liverpool, & Lancaster University.
2017 Industrial Sponsor (Sanofi Aventis): Acute Effect of Minerals and botanicals in Combination or Isolation on Cognitive Performance, Neural Activity, and Subjective and Cortisol Response to Acute Stress. (Researcher Co-I): £422,390.

Professional activities and memberships: Institute for Sustainable Food Research Theme Co-lead: Food Access and Inequalities Across the Life-Course.

PhD Opportunities

I am currently accepting applications for PhD study.

We advertise PhD opportunities (Funded or Self-Funded) on FindAPhD.com

For further information, please see the department PhD Opportunities page.