Weight and age do not account for a worse executive functioning among BED-obese patients.

PURPOSE: Research has demonstrated impaired executive functioning among Binge Eating Disorder (BED) patients that could be influenced by age and weight. We aim to compare decision-making, set-shifting and central coherence between BED-obese patients (BED-Ob), non-BED-obese patients (non-BED-Ob), and normal-weight healthy controls (NW-HC) without the influence of these variables.

METHODS: Overall, 35 BED-Ob, 32 non-BED-Ob and 26 NW-HC participants completed the Iowa Gambling Task, the Trail Making Test and the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test.

RESULTS: BED-Ob patients showed higher cognitive impairment compared to NW-HC on decision-making, set-shifting, visual attention and memory.

CONCLUSIONS: BED-Ob patients have an impaired cognitive profile on decision-making, set-shifting, visual attention and memory but not impaired central coherence. As all groups were aged-matched and no significant differences between BED-Ob and non-BED-Ob participants were evident, our results demonstrate that this impairment is independent from weight/age, pointing out that it is BED itself to account for inefficiencies in cognitive functioning.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III, case-control study.