Relating neighborhood deprivation to childhood obesity in the ABCD Study®: evidence for theories of neuroinflammation and neuronal stress

Abstract

Objective: We evaluated whether the relationships between area deprivation (ADI), body mass index (BMI) and brain structure (e.g., cortical thickness, subcortical volume) during pre-adolescence supported the neuroinflammation (NI) and/or neuronal stress (NS) theories of overeating. The NI theory proposes that ADI causes structural alteration in the brain due to the neuroinflammatory effects of overeating unhealthy foods. The NS theory proposes that ADI-related stress negatively impacts brain structure, which causes stress-related overeating and subsequent obesity. Methods: Data were gathered from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive DevelopmentSM Study (9-12-years-old; n=2872, 51.3% female). Linear mixed-effects models identified brain regions that were associated with both ADI and BMI; longitudinal mediation models assessed potential causal pathways. The NI model included ADI and BMI at 9/10-years-old and brain data at 11/12-years-old. The NS model included ADI and brain data at 9/10-years-old and BMI at 11/12-years-old. Results: In the NI model, BMI at 9/10-years-old positively mediated the relationship between AD and cortical thinning in the cuneus, lingual, and paracentral gyrus and larger volume of the Ventral DC at 11/12-years-old. In the NS model, cortical thinning in the lateral orbitofrontal cortex, lingual gyrus and larger volume of the Ventral DC at 9/10-years-old partially mediated the relationship between ADI and BMI at 11/12-years-old. Conclusion: Greater area deprivation may indicate fewer access to resources that support healthy development, like nutritious food and non-stressful environments. Our findings provide evidence in support of the neuroinflammation and stress theories of overeating, specifically, with greater ADI influencing health outcomes of obesity via brain structure alterations.

Access to quality health resources and environmental toxins affect the relationship between brain structure and BMI in a sample of pre and early adolescents

“…In our study, it may be that a lack of social/economic resources in the environment facilitate continued weight gain, and that weight gain itself caused structural changes in the brain in the caudate (a reward region) that facilitate overeating. This is in line with other studies using the ABCD Study R data showing that neighborhood resources are related to weight gain (23) and, that weight gain is associated with changes in brain structure (54,55). Others postulate that social/economic resource advocacy may play a role in determining how much funding is available for neighborhoods (56), while other studies suggests that decreased social/economic neighborhood resources are detrimental to healthy development of children and adolescents (57), that have long-lasting (and even lifetime) effects (58).…”

“…These neighborhood factors can be summed into an overall index or treated separately by domain (e.g., education, health/environmental, social/economic), ultimately permitting understanding as to The COI has been used across varying domains to establish links between SED and child health outcomes like cardiovascular disease risk (5), hospitalizations for acute ambulatory care (20), and pediatric acute care (21). Other broader indices, like the area deprivation index (ADI), have been used to assess how neighborhood deprivation relates to childhood obesity (6,22,23). However, broad indices like ADI do not provide insight into how necessary health resources relate to childhood obesity; for example, the ADI does not assess other neighborhood factors, such as grocery store access, air pollution, or educational resources available to children.…”

Variation in executive function relates to BMI increases in youth who were initially of a healthy weight in the ABCD Study

“…On the other hand, 2 years of extreme weight gain was related to structural changes in brain regions associated with EF but not trait-based impulsivity [27]. Furthermore, in a subsample of healthy-weight youth at baseline, BMI at 9/10 years old was not related to brain structure 2 years later [44]. Therefore, it may be that 2 years of human adolescence may not be enough time (or not enough weight was gained among these initially healthy-weight youth) to observe consequences of weight gain on EF (as assessed by questionnaires and tasks).…”

Neurodevelopmental Subtypes of Functional Brain Organization in the ABCD Study Using a Rigorous Analytic Framework

“…Subtype-2 is characterized by the strongest negative connectivity within and between the sensorimotor networks, indicating a form of sensorimotor integration that might be less conducive to efficient cognitive processing. Conversely, Subtype-3 distinguishes itself with strong positive connections between auditory and sensorimotor networks, suggesting a different mode of sensorimotor coordination that may support more effective rapid response mechanisms in specific contexts (Adise et al, 2022; Karcher & Barch, 2021). These distinct connectivity configurations within lower-order networks underscore the diverse ways sensorimotor integration can influence cognitive performance across these subtypes.…”