Study shows how the brains of overweight people work differently from those of healthy weight A research group from Mind, Brain, and Behaviour Research Centre (CIMCYC) of the University of Granada (UGR) has been studying the issue of excess weight from a neuroscientific perspective for many years, to determine the precise role played by the brain. In a study recently published in the International Journal of Obesity—based on the doctoral thesis of Cristina Martín, which dealt with overweight adolescents—researchers from the UGR have found that that inferior weight loss among adolescents following a diet is linked to a stronger connection between the areas of the brain associated with the motivation to eat and the rewarding effect of food.