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Many people know that obesity carries certain health risks, as it makes you more likely to develop diabetes, heart disease, stroke and certain cancers.
But fresh research being presented at this year’s European Congress on Obesity has experts concerned about the impact excess fat might have on the brain — especially in adolescents.
The study found that obesity in teenagers is linked to significant changes in brain structure, particularly in areas responsible for memory, learning and emotional regulation.
“This is particularly alarming, given that the teenage years are such an important time for brain development,” lead author Dr. Augusto César F. De Moraes, an epidemiologist professor at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, said in a press release.
After analyzing the brain scans of over 3,300 teens, they discovered that those with abdominal obesity had notably larger volumes in several brain regions compared to those without abdominal obesity.
Specifically, the hippocampus, which is crucial for memory and learning, was approximately 6.6% larger — and the amygdala, which regulates emotions like fear and happiness, was about 4.3% larger.
These results raise concerns on how obesity affects the cognitive abilities of teenagers, both now and further down the line.
“Our findings suggest that obesity, particularly abdominal obesity, can impair teenagers’ learning, memory and control of emotions,” Moraes said.
“I worry about how these changes, which are occurring at the age of 13 or 14, might affect them later in life. There’s even a chance they could be [at] a higher risk of things like of memory problems or dementia as they get older.”
The study also noted that adolescents from lower-opportunity areas exhibited reduced development in some key brain regions compared to peers in higher-opportunity areas.
Moraes said the research “highlights the urgent need to address both social inequality and health risks to support not only physical wellbeing but also healthy brain development in youth.”
“That’s why we believe supporting healthier habits early on is so important, not just for physical health, but for brain health too,” he said.
“Treating and preventing adolescent obesity won’t only improve health — it may improve brain health, too.”
These findings align with previous research indicating that obesity can lead to structural and functional brain differences in children and teens.
For instance, a 2023 study reported that obese pre-teens exhibited stark differences in cognitive function and brain structure compared to their thinner counterparts.
The prevalence of obesity among people aged two to 19 years in the US increased from 13.9% in 1999–2000 to 21.1% in 2021–2023.
According to the CDC, an estimated 22.2% of US teens are classified as obese.
