Research Connects Obesity with Poor Memory Function in Young Adults – Modern Readers

Obesity has the potential to be uniquely detrimental and dangerous to physical health in a variety of ways. However, a new study into the effects of an elevated BMI on the body has brought to light evidence that key cognitive functions may also be negatively affected by an excess of body weight.

Specifically, the results of a study carried out by a team of researchers from the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom suggest that obesity as a young adult could lead to memory problems. Experts also believe that poor memory could in own right contribute to poor eating habits, with incompletely-formed memories if eating prompting those affected to eat more.

“Increasingly, we’re beginning to see that memory — especially episodic memory, the kind where you mentally relive a past event — is also important,” said lead researcher Lucy Cheke.

“How vividly we remember a recent meal, for example today’s lunch, can make a difference to how hungry we feel and how much we are likely to reach out for that tasty chocolate bar later on.”

Prior studies have indicated a correlation between obesity and negative impact on cognitive function – specifically affecting the hippocampus. For the latest study, the research teams studied a group of 50 young adults aged 18 to 35 with a wide variety of BMI readings.

This new study examined just a small population — 50 individuals between the ages of 18 and 35. The body-mass index (BMI) of these participants ranged between 18 (on the lower cusp of a healthy weight to extremely obese. Each participant was instructed to hide a series of items around a carefully engineered landscape, in order to be asked questions about their chosen hiding spots and the items themselves a little later on.

When collated, the data clearly showed a link between higher BMI and poorer memory function.

The researchers did however admit that the scale of the study was too limited to allow for any comprehensive conclusions. Nevertheless, the study represents the latest in a long line to produce data suggesting that the harmful effects of obesity are not limited to physical health alone.

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