Program for the Comprehensive Neurocognitive Treatment of Excess Weight

The present study aims to determine the effectiveness of a comprehensive neurocognitive program for the treatment of excess weight. The program will include sessions to improve multiple cognitive processes implicated in weight gain and obesity. These cognitive processes include approach-avoidance bias, inhibition control, implementation intentions and episodic future thinking. Participants will be randomly allocated to one of three groups: 1) the experimental group will receive active neurocognitive sessions, 2) an active control group that will receive sham sessions and 3) a usual treatment control group. All three groups will receive a motivational interviewing session, along with personalized diet and physical exercise recommendations. We hypothesized that the neurocognitive program will decrease body mass index in people with overweight and obesity. In addition, the neurocognitive program will improve other anthropometric measures (waist circumference, waist-to-hip and waist-to-height ratios), lifestyle behaviors (eating behavior and physical activity), as well as cognitive processes (approach-avoidance bias, food inhibition, food liking and delay of gratification). Finally, the program will show its efficiency in the economic balance of cost-effectiveness and cost-utility.