Abstract: Obesity has adverse cognitive effects, but which specific cognitive functions are impaired by obesity remains unclear. The present study aimed to test for associations between obesity defined by BMI and high body fatness and performance in the Stroop Colour Word Test (SCWT) in Kuwaiti adolescent and young adult females. Data was collected from 400 female Kuwaiti students. SCWT performance was significantly lower in the students with obesity vs those without obesity as defined by BMI. SCWT performance was also significantly lower in the students with high body fatness vs those with lower body fatness. Those defined as having obesity by BMI were more likely to be in the lowest quartile for SCWT performance. Students with higher fatness were also at significantly higher risk of being in the lowest quartile for SCWT. SCWT performance was not affected by confounding variables considered. In conclusion, Obesity may impair SCWT performance in young females.

Keywords: Body composition; Body Mass Index; Cognition; Executive function; Obesity