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Neural Correlates Underlying General and Food-Related Working Memory in Females with Overweight/Obesity
Yazhi Pang1,2, Yuanluo Jing2, Jia Zhao1,2
1Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China.
Nutrients
|August 14, 2025
Summary
Individuals with overweight or obesity (OW/OB) have poorer general working memory and show heightened neural responses to high-calorie foods. These findings suggest a link between reward processing and cognitive control in obesity.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Psychology
- Obesity Research
Background:
- Poor working memory is linked to overweight and obesity.
- Understanding cognitive differences in individuals with overweight or obesity (OW/OB) is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate general and food-specific working memory in females with OW/OB.
- To explore the neural correlates of working memory tasks in OW/OB.
Main Methods:
- 54 female participants (26 OW/OB, 28 normal-weight) completed general and food-related two-back tasks.
- Electroencephalography (EEG) was used to record neural activity during tasks.
Main Results:
- OW/OB group exhibited poorer general working memory performance and reduced theta power.
- Heightened neural responses (P2, LPC amplitudes) to high-calorie food cues were observed in the OW/OB group.
- Lower alpha power in OW/OB for high-calorie non-targets suggested increased cognitive effort.
Conclusions:
- Individuals with OW/OB show working memory deficits and enhanced neural reactivity to high-calorie food cues.
- Findings suggest an interplay between reward salience and cognitive control in obesity.
- These insights may inform interventions for weight management.
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