Conversations around obesity tend to focus on how this condition is associated with heart disease, metabolic disorders such as diabetes, or respiratory issues like sleep apnea. But increasingly, researchers are finding more connections: Obesity may also be affecting our brains. Studies have found that the condition can damage memory, attention, and other executive functions by weakening underlying structures of the brain. To that end, obesity is considered a risk factor for neurodegenerative diseases like dementia and, now, potentially, Alzheimer’s disease.
