Elevated BMI Is Associated With Decreased Blood Flow in the Prefrontal Cortex Using SPECT Imaging in Healthy Adults
Open accessAbstract
Obesity is a risk factor for stroke and neurodegenerative disease. Excess body fat has been linked to impaired glucose metabolism, insulin resistance, and impulsivity and may be a precursor to decline in attention and executive cognitive function. Here, we investigated the effects of high BMI on regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging in healthy subjects. A total of 16 adult men and 20 adult women were recruited from the community between January 2003 and July 2009 as part of a healthy brain study (HBS) conducted at the Amen Clinics, a private medical facility. Participants in the study were screened to exclude medical, neurological, and psychiatric conditions, including substance abuse. Subjects were categorized as normal or overweight according to BMI. Using a two sample t‐test, we determined the effects of BMI on rCBF in normal vs. overweight subjects. Subjects were matched for age and gender. Statistical parametric mapping (SPM) revealed a higher BMI in healthy individuals that is associated with decreased rCBF in Broadmann areas 8, 9, 10, 11, 32, and 44, brain regions involved in attention, reasoning, and executive function (P < 0.05, corrected for multiple comparisons). We found that an elevated BMI is associated with decreased rCBF in the prefrontal cortex of a healthy cohort. These results indicate that elevated BMI may be a risk factor for decreased prefrontal cortex function and potentially impaired executive function.
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Negative correlation between BMI and striatal D2R in obese and overweight individuals, and correlation between BMI and decreased prefrontal blood flow in healthy individuals and decreased prefrontal metabolism in obese subjects, support this.
“the negative correlation between BMI and striatal D2R reported in obese (81) and in overweight (96) individuals, as well as the correlation between BMI and decreased blood flow in prefrontal regions in healthy individuals (97,98) and decreased prefrontal metabolism in obese subjects (63) support this.”
From Obesity and addiction: Neurobiological overlaps (2013) · cites this paper as [97]
Other studies found significant decreases in prefrontal cortex blood flow associated with higher weight in healthy controls, and an fMRI study reported impaired executive function in obese women.
“Other studies found significant decreases in blood flow in the prefrontal cortex associated with higher weight in healthy control subjects (84,85), and a functional magnetic resonance imaging study reported impaired executive function in obese women (86).”
From The Addictive Dimensionality of Obesity (2013) · cites this paper as [85]
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- Authors
- Willeumier, K. C., Taylor, D. V., & Amen, D. G.
- Affiliations
- Amen Clinics (US)
- Corresponding author
- Amen, Daniel G.
- Venue
- Obesity
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2011-05
- Volume
- 19
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 1095-1097
- ISSN
- 1930-7381 (ISSN-L)
- 1930-739X
- PMC
- PMC3125099
- OpenAlex
- W2009214062
- Cited by
- 223
- References
- 16
- Citations by year
- 2026: 7 · 2025: 14 · 2024: 13 · 2023: 20 · 2022: 19 · 2021: 16 · 2020: 16 · 2019: 13 · 2018: 7 · 2017: 17 · 2016: 20 · 2015: 15 · 2014: 17 · 2013: 14 · 2012: 13
- FWCI
- 7.31
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Obesity (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Historical and Modern Theater Studies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Advanced MRI Techniques and Applications
- Keywords
- body mass index, prefrontal cortex, regional cerebral blood flow, executive function, attention, healthy adults, single photon emission computed tomography, brain function
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Blood Flow Velocity, Cerebrovascular Circulation, Female, Humans, Impulsive Behavior, Insulin Resistance, Male, Middle Aged, Oximes, Cohort Studies, Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon, Body Mass Index, Prefrontal Cortex, Radiopharmaceuticals, Overweight
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