Bariatric surgery for weight loss could improve memory, according to a preliminary study recently published in Surgery for Obesity and Related Diseases.
The study of 150 people discovered that patients who received weight-loss surgery showed significantly improved memory performance three months after surgery. Obese patients who did not undergo weight-loss surgery actually showed decreased memory performance three months after surgery compared to their performance before surgery.
According to the study's authors, the memory improvements were not linked to weight loss or improvement in medical conditions, but may have been linked to the relief of physiological damages brought on by obesity. Physiological symptoms such as systemic inflammation, poorer control of blood sugar levels and reduced cardiovascular fitness can harm the brain, according to the report.
The researchers are looking at these mechanisms to determine the cause for memory improvement, as well as studying whether non-surgical weight loss could produce similar cognitive benefits.
Read the Wall Street Journal Health Blog report on obesity and memory loss.
Read more on weight-loss surgery:
-Study: Weight Loss Surgery Can Provide Migraine Relief
-Bariatric Surgery Can Save Money in Treating Diabetes
-Study: Lap-Band Surgery Caused Complications in 40% of Patients After 12 Years
The study of 150 people discovered that patients who received weight-loss surgery showed significantly improved memory performance three months after surgery. Obese patients who did not undergo weight-loss surgery actually showed decreased memory performance three months after surgery compared to their performance before surgery.
According to the study's authors, the memory improvements were not linked to weight loss or improvement in medical conditions, but may have been linked to the relief of physiological damages brought on by obesity. Physiological symptoms such as systemic inflammation, poorer control of blood sugar levels and reduced cardiovascular fitness can harm the brain, according to the report.
The researchers are looking at these mechanisms to determine the cause for memory improvement, as well as studying whether non-surgical weight loss could produce similar cognitive benefits.
Read the Wall Street Journal Health Blog report on obesity and memory loss.
Read more on weight-loss surgery:
-Study: Weight Loss Surgery Can Provide Migraine Relief
-Bariatric Surgery Can Save Money in Treating Diabetes
-Study: Lap-Band Surgery Caused Complications in 40% of Patients After 12 Years