The increased body mass index effect on declarative memory

Several lines of evidence suggest that being overweight or obese not only impacts the cardiovascular and respiratory systems but also exert a negative effect on the central nervous system. We examined the relationship between body mass index and cognitive performance in three groups of volunteers: obese (17 women; aged 59.88 ± 4.29; BMI 34.08 ± 2.31), overweight (35 women; aged 59.70 ± 4.68; BMI 27.87± 1.44), and normal body weight group (18 women; aged 64.5 ±4.84; BMI 23.53 ± 1.21). To evaluate the cognitive performance in our subjects we used face/name association test. Our data demonstrate that the increased body mass weight may have a negative effect on some cognitive function such as declarative memory.