Excess belly fat ‘impairs learning, memory and emotion control in teenagers’

Obesity in teens alters brain regions tied to memory and emotion

Adolescents with abdominal obesity have larger brain regions linked to memory and emotional control, potentially due to inflammation, according to a large MRI-based study. These brain changes, coupled with socioeconomic disadvantage, may impair cognitive and emotional development during adolescence.

Excess belly fat ‘impairs learning, memory and emotion control in teenagers’

Researchers said the findings are “particularly alarming” given the importance of adolescence when it comes to brain development.

Key brain areas are larger in teenagers with abdominal obesity, research finds

Several areas of the brain, including regions that play a critical role in learning and memory and in the control of emotions, are larger in adolescents who are living with obesity, new research being presented at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO 2025) has found.

Diets high in fat and sugar appear to harm cognitive function

Consuming a Western-style diet packed with sugar and saturated fats may hurt your brain, not just your waistline. A new study shows poorer performance on spatial memory tasks among people with diets high in processed, unhealthy foods.

The ‘particularly alarming’ ways that obesity affects teenage brains revealed in new study – Advertising and Donations – advertising-newsandtimes.com

“I worry about how these changes, which are occurring at the age of 13 or 14, might affect them later in life,” the study’s lead author said.

Teen Obesity Linked to Brain Changes in Memory and Emotion Centers

A major new study shows that adolescents with abdominal obesity have significantly larger brain regions involved in memory and emotional regulation, raising concerns about how obesity affects brain development. MRI scans revealed that the hippocampus and amygdala were enlarged in teens with obesity, especially those with high waist-to-height ratios.