Food-related inhibitory control deficits in young male adults with obesity: Behavioral and ERP evidence from a food-related go/no-go task

Obesity poses a pervasive challenge to global public health, which is linked to adverse physical health outcomes and cognitive decline. Cognitive function, particularly food-related cognitive function, plays a critical role in sustaining a healthy weight and mitigating the progression of obesity. The aim of this study was to investigate the behavioral and neuroelectronic aspects of food-related inhibitory functions in young adult males with obesity.Forty-nine participants with obesity and healthy-weight were recruited (BMI = 35.83 ± 5.06 kg/m2 vs. 22.55 ± 1.73 kg/m2, age = 24.23 ± 4.55 years vs. 26.00 ± 3.97 years). A food-related Go/No-go task which included 6 distinct blocks in a randomized order was conducted to investigate the general and food-related inhibitory control. 180 stimulus images from the Food Picture Database encompassing high-calorie food, low-calorie food, and neutral images were selected. Behavioral (Go RT, Go ACC, No-go ACC) and event-related potential measures (N2 and P3 amplitude) during the food-related Go/No-go task were measured.The main findings indicated that the group with obesity exhibited lower No-go accuracy, slower go reaction times, and smaller P3 amplitudes in high-calorie, low-calorie foods, and neutral picture, compared to the normal-weight group, but with no group difference in N2. Additionally, high-calorie food induced larger N2 and P3 amplitude than the neutral stimuli.Young male adults with obesity exhibit poorer inhibitory control in both food and non-food domains, specifically in slower reaction time and reduced accuracy, featuring difficulties in neural resource recruitment during the inhibitory control process. Additionally, the P3 component could serve as sensitive indicators to reveal the neural mechanisms of inhibitory control deficits in obesity, while the N2 and P3 components may differentiate the neural differences between high-calorie foods and non-foods in inhibitory control processing. Food, especially high-calorie food, induces more neural resources and may exacerbate the poor inhibitory ability towards food in obesity. Targeted interventions such as exercise interventions, cognitive training as well as neuromodulation interventions are warranted in the future to improve impaired general and food-related inhibitory functions in the obese populations, offering both theoretical and practical frameworks for obesity prevention and treatment.