Title |
The Neurobiology of "Food Addiction" and Its Implications for Obesity Treatment and Policy
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Published in |
Annual Review of Nutrition, June 2016
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DOI | 10.1146/annurev-nutr-071715-050909 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Adrian Carter, Joshua Hendrikse, Natalia Lee, Murat Yücel, Antonio Verdejo-Garcia, Zane B. Andrews, Wayne Hall |
Abstract |
There is a growing view that certain foods, particularly those high in refined sugars and fats, are addictive and that some forms of obesity can usefully be treated as a food addiction. This perspective is supported by a growing body of neuroscience research demonstrating that the chronic consumption of energy-dense foods causes changes in the brain's reward pathway that are central to the development and maintenance of drug addiction. Obese and overweight individuals also display patterns of eating behavior that resemble the ways in which addicted individuals consume drugs. We critically review the evidence that some forms of obesity or overeating could be considered a food addiction and argue that the use of food addiction as a diagnostic category is premature. We also examine some of the potential positive and negative clinical, social, and public policy implications of describing obesity as a food addiction that require further investigation. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Nutrition Volume 36 is July 17, 2016. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/catalog/pubdates.aspx for revised estimates. |
X Demographics
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom | 6 | 40% |
Italy | 1 | 7% |
United States | 1 | 7% |
Canada | 1 | 7% |
Russia | 1 | 7% |
Germany | 1 | 7% |
Unknown | 4 | 27% |
Demographic breakdown
Type | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Members of the public | 9 | 60% |
Scientists | 5 | 33% |
Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 1 | 7% |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Spain | 1 | <1% |
United States | 1 | <1% |
Brazil | 1 | <1% |
Unknown | 310 | 99% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Student > Master | 53 | 17% |
Student > Bachelor | 44 | 14% |
Student > Ph. D. Student | 38 | 12% |
Researcher | 28 | 9% |
Student > Doctoral Student | 22 | 7% |
Other | 59 | 19% |
Unknown | 69 | 22% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Psychology | 53 | 17% |
Medicine and Dentistry | 48 | 15% |
Nursing and Health Professions | 34 | 11% |
Neuroscience | 32 | 10% |
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 13 | 4% |
Other | 51 | 16% |
Unknown | 82 | 26% |