ArticleHuman brain mapping2013
Relationships between gray matter, body mass index, and waist circumference in healthy adults.
Article in Human brain mapping, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 74 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
74 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 119 citations in OpenAlex.
- Network-Level Convergence of Adiposity-Related Gray Matter Alterations: A Coordinate-Based Connectome Mapping Meta-Analysis With Imaging Transcriptomics.Human brain mapping · 2026Pooled it
- The cerebellum plays more than one role in the dysregulation of appetite: Review of structural evidence from typical and eating disorder populations.Brain and behavior · 2023Pooled it
- A Systematic Review of Obesity and Binge Eating Associated Impairment of the Cognitive Inhibition System.Frontiers in nutrition · 2021Pooled it
- Obesity is associated with reduced orbitofrontal cortex volume: A coordinate-based meta-analysis.NeuroImage. Clinical · 2020Pooled it
- Neuroanatomical differences in obesity: meta-analytic findings and their validation in an independent dataset.International journal of obesity (2005) · 2019Pooled it
- Deep learning-based BMI inference from structural brain MRI reflects brain alterations following lifestyle intervention.Human brain mapping · 2024Trial
- Central Obesity-related Brain Alterations Predict Cognitive Impairments in First Episode of Psychosis.Schizophrenia bulletin · 2026Observational
- Aging and metabolism contribute separately to brain-body health.PLoS biology · 2026Article
- Causal relationship between obesity, leptin, and brain structure and functional connectivity: evidence based on bidirectional and mediation mendelian randomisation analyses.Nutrition & metabolism · 2026Article
- Investigation of region-of-interest-based functional connectivity within the default mode network among adolescents with depression complicated by obesity.BMC psychiatry · 2025Article
- Article
- Neuropsychiatric Abnormalities in Metabolic Disturbances: Interplay of Adipokines and Neurotransmission.Molecular neurobiology · 2025Review
- [Impact of body composition and psychological state on executive functions in individuals with obesity].Anales del sistema sanitario de Navarra · 2025Article
- The relationships between anthropometric measurements, organ weights and intracranial, carotid and coronary atherosclerosis.BMC cardiovascular disorders · 2025Article
- Perspectives on obesity imaging: [International journal of obesity (2005) · 2025Article
- How is the brain affected by metabolically healthy or unhealthy obesity in adulthood and elderly? A narrative review of neuroimaging and neurocognitive findings.Frontiers in aging neuroscience · 2025Review
- Structural covariation between cerebellum and neocortex intrinsic structural covariation links cerebellum subregions to the cerebral cortex.Journal of neurophysiology · 2024Article
- Leptin's Inverse Association With Brain Morphology and Depressive Symptoms: A Discovery and Confirmatory Study Across 2 Independent Samples.Biological psychiatry. Cognitive neuroscience and neuroimaging · 2024Article
- Sex-Specific Association of Body Mass Index with Hippocampal Subfield Volume and Cognitive Function in Non-Demented Chinese Older Adults.Brain sciences · 2024Article
- The causal link between cardiometabolic risk factors and gray matter atrophy: An exploratory study.Heliyon · 2023Article
14 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Obesity and overweight are often defined by the body mass index (BMI), which associates with metabolic and cardiovascular disease, and possibly with dementia as well as variations in brain volume. However, body fat distribution and abdominal obesity (as measured by waist circumference) is more strongly correlated with cardiovascular and metabolic risk than is BMI. While prior studies have revealed negative associations between gray matter tissue volumes and BMI, the relationship with respect to waist circumference remains largely unexplored. We therefore investigated the effects of both BMI and waist circumference on local gray matter volumes in a group of 115 healthy subjects screened to exclude physical or mental disorders that might affect the central nervous system. Results revealed significant negative correlations for both BMI and waist circumference where regional gray matter effects were largest within the hypothalamus and further encompassed prefrontal, anterior temporal and inferior parietal cortices, and the cerebellum. However, associations were more widespread and pronounced for waist circumference than BMI. Follow-up analyses showed that these relationships differed significantly across gender. While associations were similar for both BMI and waist circumference for males, females showed more extensive correlations for waist circumference. Our observations suggest that waist circumference is a more sensitive indicator than BMI, particularly in females, for potentially determining the adverse effects of obesity and overweight on the brain and associated risks to health.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.