Weight spectrum and executive function in adolescents: the moderating role of negative emotions

Qingmin Lin; Yanrui Jiang; Xiaoning Sun; Yunting Zhang; Wenjie Shan; Jin Zhao; Xuelai Wang; Qi Zhu; Wanqi Sun; Hui Lu; Fan Jiang

doi:10.1186/s13034-022-00468-9

Weight spectrum and executive function in adolescents: the moderating role of negative emotions

Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health. 2022 May 9;16(1):34. doi: 10.1186/s13034-022-00468-9.

Authors

Qingmin Lin¹, Yanrui Jiang^{2

3}, Xiaoning Sun^{2

3

4}, Yunting Zhang⁵, Wenjie Shan^{5

6}, Jin Zhao⁵, Xuelai Wang⁵, Qi Zhu^{2

3}, Wanqi Sun⁷, Hui Lu¹, Fan Jiang^{8

9

10}

Affiliations

¹ School of Life Science and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
² Department of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, Pediatric Translational Medicine Institution, Shanghai Children's Medical Center, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 1678 Dongfang Rd., Shanghai, 200127, China.
³ Ministry of Education-Shanghai Key Laboratory of Children's Environmental Health, Xinhua Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200092, China.
⁴ Shanghai Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Technology, Shanghai, 201602, China.
⁵ Child Health Advocacy Institute, Shanghai Children's Medical Center, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200127, China.
⁶ Department of VIP Clinic, Shanghai Children's Medical Center, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200127, China.
⁷ Shanghai Mental Health Center, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200030, China.
⁸ Department of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, Pediatric Translational Medicine Institution, Shanghai Children's Medical Center, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 1678 Dongfang Rd., Shanghai, 200127, China. fanjiang@shsmu.edu.cn.
⁹ Ministry of Education-Shanghai Key Laboratory of Children's Environmental Health, Xinhua Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200092, China. fanjiang@shsmu.edu.cn.
¹⁰ Shanghai Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Technology, Shanghai, 201602, China. fanjiang@shsmu.edu.cn.

Abstract

Background: While recent works suggested that overweight/obesity may impair executive function (EF), the overweight/obesity-EF relationship has not been well studied in adolescents. Furthermore, no research has investigated adolescent EF impairments across the weight spectrum (e.g., underweight or thinness, normal, overweight/obesity), especially those with underweight condition, with the moderating effect of negative emotions in the weight-EF association being limitedly investigated. We aimed to determine whether overall and abdominal weight spectrum associated with EF impairments and to identity whether negative emotions moderate the weight-EF link in adolescents.

Methods: We applied a subsample of the SCHEDULE-A project. Adolescents (11-18 years) were recruited using a multi-stage cluster random sampling approach. We measured the overall and abdominal weight spectrum by body mass index z-score and waist-to-height ratio, respectively. We used the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) to evaluate adolescent EF in nature setting, and utilized the Depression Anxiety and Stress Scales (DASS-21) to assess three types of negative emotional status (i.e., depression, anxiety, and stress).

Results: Of the 1935 adolescents, 963 (49.8%) were male. We observed that abdominal, not overall, overweight was associated with the Global Executive Composite (GEC) impairment (OR = 1.59, 95% CI 1.07-2.35), particularly for inhibit, emotion control, shift, working memory, and monitor domains. Furthermore, depression moderated the abdominal overweight-GEC association (P = 0.032 for interaction term), especially for emotional control, working memory, and initiate dimensions. Moreover, we also found abdominal thinness was associated with the Metacognition Index problem (OR = 1.33, 95% CI 1.04-1.72), particularly for plan and monitor areas.

Conclusions: Both abdominal overweight and thinness were associated with adolescent EF, and depression would be a modifiable target to improve EF in adolescents with abdominal overweight. Future longitudinal studies are needed to investigate the causal relationship between abdominal weight spectrum and EF, as well as the underlying mechanisms among adolescents suffering from depression.

Keywords: Abdominal weight; Adolescents; Depression; Executive function; Weight spectrum.

Abstract

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