Physical fitness, exercise and brain health in children with overweight/obesity: The ActiveBrains randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Childhood obesity has been catalogued as one of the most serious public health problems. Among the most important consequences of childhood obesity we can find its negative influence on brain health. Childhood is a critical period for neurodevelopment, and the presence of obesity could negatively alter it. In this context, health-related factors such as physical fitness or physical activity may help to counteract this negative influence. Although there is emerging evidence on this respect, it is still not sufficient to draw firm conclusions and several limitations have been identified in this body of literature and must be addressed. Therefore, the overall aim of the present International Doctoral Thesis is to study the role of physical fitness, physical activity, and sedentary time in brain health outcomes (SECTION 1), and to investigate the effect of a 4.5-month physical exercise program on brain health (SECTION 2) in children with overweight/obesity.