Overweight and obesity: the role of executive functions in excessive body weight

The increasing incidence of people who are affected by overweight or obesity represents one of the main worldwide health problems. Accordingly, to deep the possible causes or exacerbating factors related to the increasing body weight is relevant. In the last years, many studies have focused on the relationship between body weight and cognitive processes. However, few studies focused on the relationship between overweight in the absence of pathological conditions and Executive Functions (EFs). This study is aimed to detect some aspects of the relationship between EFs and overweight in the general population. A systematic review of the literature (Chapter 1) analyzed cross-sectional and longitudinal studies to verify a possible causality between these variables. In the following chapters, some experimental studies have deepened aspects that emerged from the literature as under-examined. In both theoretical and experimental sections, the overall work has highlighted the need to approach executive functions in overweight and the related overeating behavior, confirming an association between specific EFs and overweight conditions during different developmental stages. In addition, a moderate role of food stimuli in influencing executive performance emerged.