Beyer, F., García-García, I., Heinrich, M., Schroeter, M. L., Sacher, J., Luck, T., Riedel-Heller, S. G., Stumvoll, M., Villringer, A., & Witte, A. V. (2019). Neuroanatomical correlates of food addiction symptoms and body mass index in the general population. Hum Brain Mapp, 40(9), 2747-2758. https://doi.org/10.1002/hbm.24557 Takeaway: No association found with Food Addiction symptoms and cortical thickness in a whole brain analysis.
Prevalence of food addiction and association with stress, sleep quality and chronotype: A cross-sectional survey among university students
Najem, J., Saber, M., Aoun, C., El Osta, N., Papazian, T., & Rabbaa Khabbaz, L. (2020). Prevalence of food addiction and association with stress, sleep quality and chronotype: A cross-sectional survey among university students. Clinical Nutrition, 39(2), 533–539. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnu.2019.02.038 From the research article’s abstract: “Food addiction (FA) is defined as an insatiable desire for the consumption of specific high-fat, high-sugar foods beyond the required energy needs for sustenance. The aims of this study were to determine FA prevalence and to assess associations between FA, stress, sleep quality and chronotype among university students. A cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey conducted among students from 8 major Lebanese universities. Students were randomly selected and requested to fill the questionnaire. 644 agreed to participate. Data were collected via a face-to-face interview conducted by 2 trained research assistants. In addition to sociodemographic data, all participants filled the following self-administered standardized and validated questionnaires: Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire (MEQ) and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). FA prevalence was 10.1% with a 95% confidence interval of 7.8–12.4%. 56.5% of all the participants ha
Symptoms of ‘Food Addiction’ in binge eating disorder using the Yale Food Addiction Scale version 2.0
Carter, J. C., Van Wijk, M., & Rowsell, M. (2019). Symptoms of ‘food addiction’ in binge eating disorder using the Yale Food Addiction Scale version 2.0. Appetite, 133, 362-369. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2018.11.032 “In fact, 92% of the BED group met YFAS 2.0 criteria for at least mild ‘food addiction’ compared to only 6% of the NED group.” – From the Abstract
A Critical Examination of the Practical Implications Derived from the Food Addiction Concept
Meule, A. (2019). A Critical Examination of the Practical Implications Derived from the Food Addiction Concept. Current Obesity Reports, 8(1), 11–17. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13679-019-0326-2 From the research article’s abstract: “Adopting an addiction perspective on eating disorders and obesity may have practical implications for diagnostic classification, prevention, and treatment of these disorders. The present article critically examines these implications derived from the food addiction concept. Introducing food addiction as a new disorder in diagnostic classification system seems redundant as most individuals with an addiction-like eating behavior are already covered by established eating disorder diagnoses. Food addiction may be a useful metaphor in the treatment of binge eating, but would be inappropriate for the majority of obese individuals. Implying an addiction to certain foods is not necessary when applying certain approaches inspired by the addiction field for prevention and treatment of obesity. The usefulness of abstinence models in the treatment of eating disorders and obesity needs to be rigorously tested in future studies.
Prevalence of Food Addiction and Binge Eating in an Italian sample of bariatric surgery candidates and overweight/obese patients seeking low-energy-diet therapy
Bianciardi, E., Fabbricatore, M., Di Lorenzo, G., Innamorati, M., Tomassini, L., Gentileschi, P., Niolu, C., Siracusano, A., & Imperatori, C. (2019). Prevalence of Food Addiction and Binge Eating in an Italian sample of bariatric surgery candidates and overweight/obese patients seeking low-energy-diet therapy. Riv Psichiatr, 54(3), 127-130. https://doi.org/10.1708/3181.31602 Discussion/conclusion: “Our results confirm that both FA and clinical level of binge eating are common problems in both overweight/obese patients seeking low-energy-diet therapy and in obese bariatric surgery candidates, justifying the clinical utility of assessing these dysfunctional eating patterns.”
Processed foods and food reward
Small DM, DiFeliceantonio AG. Processed foods and food reward. Science. 2019 Jan 25;363(6425):346-347. doi: 10.1126/science.aav0556. PMID: 30679360. Signals that convey nutritional information from the gut to the brain regulate food reinforcement and food choice. Specifically, although central neural computations execute choice, the gut nervous system communicates information about the nutritional outcomes of choices to the brain so that representation of food values can be updated. Here, we discuss recent findings that suggest the fidelity of gut-brain signaling and the resulting representation of food value is compromised by processed foods. Understanding this axis could inform about feeding behavior involving processed foods and obesity. Study link
Validity and Reliability of a Korean Version of Yale Food Addiction Scale for Children (YFAS-C)
Kim, J. H., Song, J. H., Kim, R., Jang, M. Y., Hong, H. J., Kim, H. J., & Shin, S. H. (2019). Validity and Reliability of a Korean Version of Yale Food Addiction Scale for Children (YFAS-C). Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing, 49(1), 59–68. https://doi.org/10.4040/jkan.2019.49.1.59 From the research article’s abstract: “This study evaluated the psychometric properties of the Korean version of Yale Food Addiction Scale for Children (YFAS-C). Participants were 419 young adolescent students (11~15 years old). The content validity of the expert group was calculated as the content validity index (CVI) after the translation and reverse translation process of the 25 items of the YFAS-C. The multitrait-multimethod matrix (MTMM) method was used to verify the construct validity; the generalized linear model (GLM) was used to evaluate the concurrent and incremental validity. Reliability was calculated as Kuder-Richardson-20 (KR-20) and Spearman-Brown coefficients. The CVI of the 25 items was greater than the item-level CVI .80 and the scale-level CVI .90. The Korean version of YFAS-C had verified convergent validity in emotional eating and external eating and discriminant validity in restrained eating. In addition, it had verified concurrent validity in emotional eating and external eating.
Validity and Reliability of a Korean Version of Yale Food Addiction Scale for Children (YFAS-C)
Kim, J. H., Song, J. H., Kim, R., Jang, M. Y., Hong, H. J., Kim, H. J., & Shin, S. H. (2019). Validity and Reliability of a Korean Version of Yale Food Addiction Scale for Children (YFAS-C). Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing, 49(1), 59–68. https://doi.org/10.4040/jkan.2019.49.1.59 From the validation study’s abstract: “The Korean version of YFAS-C is a valid scale and it can be a useful scale for preventing obesity by predicting food addiction early.”
An addiction model-based mobile health weight loss intervention in adolescents with obesity
Vidmar A. P., Pretlow R., Borzutzky C., Wee C. P., Fox D. S., Fink, C. and Mittleman, S. D An addiction model-based mobile health weight loss intervention in adolescents with obesity. Pediatric Obesity 14, e12464, February 2019. New and creative approaches are needed to address pediatric obesity. If successful, this RCT may provide an innovative and cost-effective mHealth approach, based on addiction methods, for weight loss among adolescents with overweight and obesity. vidmar2019.pdf
Psychometric properties of the modified Yale Food Addiction Scale Version 2.0 in an Italian non-clinical sample
Imperatori, C., Fabbricatore, M., Lester, D., Manzoni, G. M., Castelnuovo, G., Raimondi, G., & Innamorati, M. (2019). Psychometric properties of the modified Yale Food Addiction Scale Version 2.0 in an Italian non-clinical sample. Eating and weight disorders, 24(1), 37–45. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-018-0607-x From the psychometric study’s prevalence: “15 individuals (5.7%) met the criteria for a diagnosis of food addiction according to the mYFAS 2.0.”