Avena, N. M., Gearhardt, A. N., Gold, M. S., Wang, G. J., & Potenza, M. N. (2012). Tossing the baby out with the bathwater after a brief rinse? The potential downside of dismissing food addiction based on limited data. Nat Rev Neurosci, 13(7), 514; author reply 514. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn3212-c1 A one-pager responding to a perspective article in Nature Reviews Neuroscience. avena2012 .pdf
Animal models of sugar and fat bingeing: relationship to Food Addiction and increased body weight
Avena, N.M., Bocarsly, Hobel (2012) Animal Models of sugar and fat bingeing: relationship to to food addiction and increased body weight. Methods in Molecular Biology (Clifton, N.J.), 829, 351-365 https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-61779-458-223 Animal models of sugar and fat bingeing allow for a detailed analysis of behaviors and their concomitant physiological effects. The model of sugar bingeing has been used successfully to elicit behavioral and neurochemical signs of dependence in rats; e.g., indices of opiate-like withdrawal, increased intake after abstinence, cross-sensitization with drugs of abuse, and the repeated release of dopamine in the nucleus accumbens following repeated bingeing. Studies using the model of fat bingeing suggest that it can produce some, but not all, of the signs of dependence that are seen with sugar binge eating, as well as increased body weight, potentially leading to obesity. binge eating addiction 2012.pdf
Translational neuroimaging in drug addiction and obesity
Michaelides M, Thanos PK, Volkow ND, Wang GJ. Translational neuroimaging in drug addiction and obesity. Ilar j 2012;53(1): 59-68. Drug addiction and obesity show striking similarities in functional impairment in brain regions and neurotransmitter circuits. michaelides2012 .pdf
Food and drug cues activate similar brain regions: a meta-analysis of functional MRI studies
Tang DW, Fellows LK, Small DM, Dagher A. Food and drug cues activate similar brain regions: a meta-analysis of functional MRI studies. Physiol Behav. 2012 Jun 6;106(3):317-24. doi: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2012.03.009. Epub 2012 Mar 16. PMID: 22450260. Meta-analysis of studies of functional MRI studies Study link
Further developments in the neurobiology of food and addiction: update on the state of the science
Avena, N. M., Gold, J. A., Kroll, C., & Gold, M. S. (2012). Further developments in the neurobiology of food and addiction: update on the state of the science. Nutrition (Burbank, Los Angeles County, Calif.), 28(4), 341-343. https://doi.org/10.1016/i.nut.2011.11.002 Review avena2012further
Does food addiction exist? A phenomenological discussion based on the psychiatric classification of substance-related disorders and addiction
Albayrak, 0., Wölfle, S. M., & Hebebrand, J. (2012). Does food addiction exist? A phenomenological discussion based on the psychiatric classification of substance-related disorders and addiction. Obes Facts, 5(2), 165-179. https://doi.org/10.1159/000338310 Review albayrak2012 .pdf
Brain PET Imaging in Obesity and Food Addiction: Current Evidence and Hypothesis
Iozzo, P., Guiducci, L., Guzzardi, M. A., & Pagotto, U. (2012). Brain PET imaging in obesity and food addiction: current evidence and hypothesis. Obesity facts, 5(2), 155–164. https://doi.org/10.1159/000338328 From the literature review’s abstract: “This review summarizes the current evidence, supporting the concepts that regions involved in the somatosensory response to food sight, taste, and smell are activated by palatable foods and may be hyperresponsive in obese individuals, areas controlling executive drive seem to overreact to the anticipation of pleasure during cue exposure, and those involved in cognitive control and inhibitory behavior may be resistant to the perception of reward after food exposure in obese subjects.”
Brain PET Imaging in Obesity and Food Addiction: Current Evidence and Hypothesis
Iozzo, P., Guiducci, L., Guzzardi, M. A., & Pagotto, U. (2012). Brain PET imaging in obesity and food addiction: current evidence and hypothesis. Obesity Facts, 5(2), 155–164. https://doi.org/10.1159/000338328 From the research article’s abstract: “The ongoing epidemics of obesity is one main health concern of the present time. Overeating in some obese individuals shares similarities with the loss of control and compulsive behavior observed in drug-addicted subjects, suggesting that obesity may involve food addiction. Here, we review the contributions provided by the use of positron emission tomography to the current understanding of the cerebral control of obesity and food intake in humans. The available studies have shown that multiple areas in the brain are involved with the reward properties of food, such as prefrontal, orbitofrontal, somatosensory cortices, insula, thalamus, hypothalamus, amygdala, and others.
Food and drug cues activate similar brain regions: A meta-analysis of functional MRI studies
Tang, D. W., Fellows, L. K., Small, D. M., & Dagher, A. (2012). Food and drug cues activate similar brain regions: a meta-analysis of functional MRI studies. Physiology & Behavior, 106(3), 317–324. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2012.03.009 From the research article’s abstract: “In healthy individuals, food cues can trigger hunger and feeding behavior. Likewise, smoking cues can trigger craving and relapse in smokers. Brain imaging studies report that structures involved in appetitive behaviors and reward, notably the insula, striatum, amygdala and orbital frontal cortex, tend to be activated by both visual food and smoking cues. Here, by carrying out a meta-analysis of human neuro-imaging studies, we investigate the neural network activated by: 1) food versus neutral cues (14 studies, 142 foci) 2) smoking versus neutral cues (15 studies, 176 foci) 3) smoking versus neutral cues when correlated with craving scores (7 studies, 108 foci). PubMed was used to identify cue-reactivity imaging studies that compared brain response to visual food or smoking cues to neutral cues. Fourteen articles were identified for the food meta-analysis and fifteen articles were identified for the smoking meta-analysis.
The Obesity Epidemic and Food Addiction: Clinical Similarities to Drug Dependence
Fortuna, J. L. (2012). The obesity epidemic and food addiction: clinical similarities to drug dependence. J Psychoactive Drugs, 44(1), 56-63. https://doi.org/10.1080/02791072.2012.662092 From the clinical review’s abstract: “Palatable foods have palliative properties and can be viewed as a form of self medication. elevated blood glucose levels catalyze the absorption of tryptophan and its subsequent conversion into the mood-elevating chemical serotonin.”