Uku Vainik (PhD) is a researcher at McGill University’s Montreal Neurological Institute, and at the Institute of Psychology, University of Tartu, Estonia.
Uku Vainik (PhD) Montreal Neurological Institute researcher, lead author of the study. (McGill-supplied)
The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences under the title, “Neurobehavioral correlates of obesity are largely heritable” (availabel HERE)
It was an examination of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and cognitive test data from 1,200 individuals, supplied as part of the Human Connectome Project.
Vainik says obesity is the result of overeating, but what they discovered were actual brain structure differences between obese people and average-sized people.
However, he points out they can’t at this point make a direct connection between brain differences and obesity and say at this point that genetically inherited brain anatomy differences may play a role in how people think. They discovered such cognitive differences in that those with a high body mass index (BMI) were less able to delay gratification, i.e, choosing something desirable immediately versus waiting for a greater reward later.
Other mental differences were also noticed indicating some people could be more sensitive to visual food cues, and less able to resist them by considering the negative context of eating, like weight gain
Vainik says along with heritable genes there are evolutionary reasons behind overeating.
He says throughout evolution as food sources were sometimes scarce, humans evolved to eat as much as they could when food was available to carry them through lean times.
It’s only in the last 100 years or so, that food availability has become plentiful and constantly available. However, people have to consciously (mentally) choose to override evolutionary factors hardwired in the brain.
Vainik says the study shows that people shouldn’t only focus on diet to reduce weight, but also cognitive training to resist food should be considered As he says, “acknowledge the neurobehavioural profile that obesity is genetically intertwined with. Such interventions might help people to stay lean despite their genetic signature”.
