Relationship between eating behaviors and brain responses to food presentation

Main Category: MRI / PET / Ultrasound
Article Date: 24 Jun 2004 - 9:00 PDT


Because diet and nutrition are vital aspects of healthy human beings, scientists have begun studying the brain's potential influence and role in formulating a healthy diet and curbing obesity. In a study from the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, N.Y., researchers assessed the effects of food presentation on the brain. The study could help researchers assess the root, chemical causes of eating disorders and obesity. The team presented its findings at the Society of Nuclear Medicine's 51st Annual Meeting.

Eating behaviors are influenced by many factors, including stress, cognitive restraint (i.e., restricting food intake to control body weight, or dieting) and perceived hunger. To examine the areas of the brain that respond to these three behaviors, the scientists used FDG-PET imaging to evaluate how the brain responds when a subject is presented with food, but not everyone responded the same.

The study included 12 healthy subjects--tested on three separate days and food deprived for 18 hours--and measured their brain response in three different situations: food stimulation, neutral stimulation, and no stimulation. Using FDG-PET imaging, the researchers concluded that food stimulation significantly increased local brain metabolic activity.

According to Dr. Gene-Jack Wang, MD, "individuals for whom food is more reinforcing have to rely more on cognitive control to not eat when they have the desire to eat. Our results showed that people who have higher metabolic changes in the left ventral striatum of the brain during food stimulation need more cognitive restraint; in other words, those who are more sensitive to food stimulation, it is more difficult and takes more effort to diet."

The impact of the study may be far-reaching. According to Dr. Wang, "if we know how the brain reacts to food and hunger, we can figure out what occurs chemically during perceived abnormal responses. The hope is that, if we understand the brain's chemical response to food, then we will be able to manage things like eating disorders and find new and innovative treatment options."

The Society of Nuclear Medicine is holding its 51st Annual Meeting June 19-23, 2004, at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in downtown Philadelphia. Hot topics for the 2004 meeting include techniques for the early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease; advanced imaging for the diagnosis, staging, and treatment of cancer; nuclear cardiology; and the collaboration between nuclear medicine and bioengineering in the fight against cancer.

Contact: Darren DiPatri
ddipatri@kamber.com
202-955-1242
Society of Nuclear Medicine

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