Groppe Karoline, Elsner Birgit
Department of Psychology, University of Potsdam, Karl-Liebknecht-Street 24/25, 14476 Potsdam, Germany.
Department of Psychology, University of Potsdam, Karl-Liebknecht-Street 24/25, 14476 Potsdam, Germany.
Appetite. 2015 Apr;87:127-36. doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2014.12.203. Epub 2014 Dec 17.
Studies linking executive function (EF) and overweight suggest that a broad range of executive functions might influence weight via obesity-related behaviors, such as particular eating styles. Currently, however, longitudinal studies investigating this assumption in children are rare. We hypothesized that lower hot and cool EF predicts a stronger increase in eating styles related to greater weight gain (food approach) and a weaker increase in eating styles related to less weight gain (food avoidance) over a 1-year period. Hot (delay of gratification, affective decision-making) and cool (attention shifting, inhibition, working memory updating) EF was assessed experimentally in a sample of 1657 elementary-school children (German school classes 1-3) at two time points, approximately one year apart. The children's food-approach and food-avoidance behavior was rated mainly via parent questionnaires at both time points. As expected, lower levels of hot and cool EF predicted a stronger increase in several food-approach eating styles across a 1-year period, mainly in girls. Unexpectedly, poorer performance on the affective decision-making task also predicted an increase in certain food-avoidance styles, namely, slowness in eating and satiety responsiveness, in girls. Results implicate that lower EF is not only seen in eating-disordered or obese individuals but also acts as a risk factor for an increase in particular eating styles that play a role in the development of weight problems in children.
将执行功能（EF）与超重联系起来的研究表明，广泛的执行功能可能通过与肥胖相关的行为（如特定的饮食方式）来影响体重。然而，目前在儿童中调查这一假设的纵向研究很少。我们假设，在一年的时间里，较低的热执行功能和冷执行功能预示着与体重增加较多相关的饮食方式（食物趋近）会有更强的增加，而与体重增加较少相关的饮食方式（食物回避）会有较弱的增加。在1657名小学生（德国1 - 3年级）的样本中，在两个时间点（相隔约一年）通过实验评估了热执行功能（延迟满足、情感决策）和冷执行功能（注意力转移、抑制、工作记忆更新）。在两个时间点，主要通过家长问卷对儿童的食物趋近和食物回避行为进行评分。正如预期的那样，较低水平的热执行功能和冷执行功能预示着在一年的时间里，几种食物趋近饮食方式会有更强的增加，主要发生在女孩身上。出乎意料的是，情感决策任务表现较差也预示着女孩某些食物回避方式会增加，即进食缓慢和饱腹感反应。结果表明，较低的执行功能不仅在饮食失调或肥胖个体中出现，而且还作为一种风险因素，导致在儿童体重问题发展中起作用的特定饮食方式增加。
