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Executive function in adolescents with obesity: A systematic review and meta-analysis
U Andrea Asgeirsdottir1, Lieneke Janssen2, Arno Villringer3
1Department of Neurology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany; German Center for Child and Adolescent Health (DZKJ), Partner site Leipzig/Dresden, Germany.
Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews
|June 24, 2026
Summary
Adolescents with obesity show modestly lower executive function performance compared to healthy-weight peers. These findings highlight the link between adolescent obesity and cognitive function, impacting future research and treatment strategies.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Psychology
- Public Health
Background:
- Executive function (EF) development continues through adolescence, influencing behavioral choices.
- Compromised EF is linked to unhealthy eating and weight gain, but adolescent obesity-EF links are unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To systematically review and meta-analyze if executive function is compromised in adolescent obesity.
- To determine if specific EF domains (inhibition, cognitive flexibility, working memory, decision-making, planning, verbal fluency) are differentially impaired.
Main Methods:
- Systematic review and meta-analysis of 49 studies with 9648 participants.
- Comparison of executive function task performance between adolescents with excess weight (overweight or obesity) and healthy-weight peers.
Main Results:
- Adolescents with excess weight demonstrated small but significant worse performance across EF domains (g = -0.314, p <.001).
- Similar EF differences were observed for adolescents with obesity, but not overweight, compared to healthy-weight peers.
- No specific EF domain showed more pronounced impairments; effect sizes were similar across domains.
Conclusions:
- Adolescents with obesity exhibit modestly lower executive function scores compared to healthy-weight peers.
- Age, BMI range, and proportion of female participants moderated the observed differences.
- Findings have implications for understanding and treating adolescent obesity.
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