Speaker name
Maura Jazmín Ramírez Flores
Institutional affiliation
Facultad de Psicología, UNAM
Semblance
She has a degree in Psychology, and a PhD in the field of Behavioral Neurosciences, from the Graduate Program in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, UNAM.
She is a full time professor at the Faculty of Psychology of the UNAM, in the area of Psychobiology and Neurosciences for 19 years, and professor in the Master in Clinical Neuropsychology of the Faculty of Psychology, of which she has been Academic Responsible for 7 years.
She is in charge of the Laboratory of Neuropsychology and Cognition, with research on brain damage and cognitive functioning, as in the case of traumatic brain injury, multiple sclerosis, as well as in the case of learning disorders, social skills and emotions in various neurological and psychological disorders.
He has publications in national and international journals, lecturer and speaker in national and international congresses. He has participated in the dissemination of neurosciences in forums such as museums. Likewise, he has directed theses at undergraduate and master's level.
Overweight and Obesity in Children and Adolescents How is their Working Memory?
Abstact
Obesity and overweight, also called adiposity, is a health problem that has gained relevance worldwide as more and more people have adverse consequences not only physically, but also cognitively. In the case of children and adolescents, the brain is constantly acquiring new learning, but it is also exposed to adverse situations that can diminish its functioning and the cognitive processes it supports. Particularly, studies have increased in this population showing a decrease in cognitive functions, it has been postulated that the prefrontal cortex may be sensitive to these effects, being working memory one of the processes to be studied. The aim of the study is to know if there are effects of adiposity on visual and auditory working memory in Mexican children and adolescents, compared to their normal-weight peers. The participants, aged 7 to 16 years, with obesity and overweight are selected from a public pediatric hospital and the normopeso from a public school and by volunteers. The tests applied correspond to the EFECS and BANFE. Children with adiposity are expected to have a lower performance in tasks, mainly in the auditory-verbal one. The negative effects on cognitive performance have been explained both by neurobiological events following adiposity, as well as other proposals that adiposity is a consequence of decreased executive functioning.