Grammatikopoulou, M. G., et al. (2018). Food addiction, orthorexia, and food-related… Eat Weight Disord, 23(4), 459–467. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-018-0514-1 From the cross-sectional study’s abstract: “Among participating students, 4.5% had food addiction and 68.2% demonstrated orthorexia. Orthorexic behavior was associated with increased BMI, waist circumference and energy intake.”
Food additives, food and the concept of ‘food addiction’: Is stimulation of the brain reward circuit by food sufficient to trigger addiction?
Onaolapo, A. Y., & Onaolapo, O. J. (2018). Food additives, food and the concept of ‘food addiction’: Is stimulation of the brain reward circuit by food sufficient to trigger addiction? Pathophysiology, 25(4), 263-276. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pathophys.2018.04.002 From the research article’s abstract: “In the last few years, the concept of ‘food addiction’ has continued to gain popularity, with human and animal studies demonstrating the differential effects of foods that are high in fat, sugar or protein on appetite, satiety, eating behaviour and the development of food addiction. However, a number of studies have disputed the occurrence of food addiction in humans. Questions have also arisen regarding the possible impacts that food additives may have on the development of food addiction or eating disorders. Also, it is known that alterations in food composition and the presence of food additives (flavour enhancers, sugars, sugar substitutes, and non-nutritive sweeteners) are factors that generally influence the sensory perception of food. Our understanding of the potential roles of central neurotransmitters (such as dopamine) and certain neuropeptides in the evolution of food addiction is also evolving; but presently, there isn’t sufficient scientific evidence to consider any food ingredient, micronutrient or standard food-additive as addictive.
What Is the Evidence for “Food Addiction?” A Systematic Review
Gordon, E. L., et al. (2018). What Is the Evidence for “Food Addiction?” A Systematic Review. Nutrients, 10(4), 477. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10040477 From the meta-analysis’s abstract: “Overall, findings support food addiction as a unique construct. Symptoms appear to better fit criteria for substance use disorder than behavioral addiction.”
Does food addiction contribute to excess weight among clinic patients seeking weight reduction? Examination of the Modified Yale Food Addiction Survey
Masheb, R. M., Ruser, C. B., Min, K. M., Bullock, A. J., & Dorflinger, L. M. (2018). Does food addiction contribute to excess weight among clinic patients seeking weight reduction? Examination of the Modified Yale Food Addiction Survey. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 84, 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comppsych.2018.03.006 From the research article’s abstract: “Despite controversy surrounding the construct of food addiction, its relationship with obesity and the validity of the Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS), have become emerging fields of study. No prior research has examined the prevalence and correlates of food addiction, and validation of the Modified Yale Food Addiction Scale (mYFAS), in a non-research based weight management clinic setting. The current study sought to examine the validity of a brief version of the Yale Food Addiction Scale in weight loss seeking patients, and to determine whether food addiction contributes to excess weight in this patient population. The sample consisted of 126 Veterans with overweight/obesity who attended an orientation session for a weight management program. Participants (mean age = 61.8 years, mean BMI = 38.0, male = 89.7%, Caucasian = 76.0%) completed questionnaires related to food addiction, weight and eating, and mental health and behavior.
Validation of the Italian Yale Food Addiction Scale in postgraduate university students
Manzoni, G. M., Rossi, A., Pietrabissa, G., Varallo, G., Molinari, E., Poggiogalle, E., Donini, L. M., Tarrini, G., Melchionda, N., Piccione, C., Gravina, G., Luxardi, G., Manzato, E., Schumann, R., Innamorati, M., Imperatori, C., Fabbricatore, M., & Castelnuovo, G. (2018). Validation of the Italian Yale Food Addiction Scale in postgraduate university students. Eating and Weight Disorders – Studies on Anorexia, Bulimia and Obesity, 23(2), 167–176. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-018-0495-0 From the research article’s abstract: “This study was aimed to examine the structural and construct validity of the Italian version of the Yale Food Addiction Scale in a multisite sample of postgraduate students. Two hundred and fifty-six subjects (78.1% females) aged from 18 to 53 years (mean = 23.93, SD = 4.96) and attending different postgraduate university programs at multiple Italian universities completed the Italian YFAS, the Italian Binge Eating Scale (BES), the Italian Eating Attitudes Test-26 and the Italian Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ) online through Qualtrics. Confirmatory Factor Analysis showed that the single-factor model of the Italian YFAS including all original items had adequate fit indexes (χ2252 = 454.183; p < 0.001; normed χ2 = 1.802; RMSEA = 0.056; 90% CI 0.048–0.076; CFI = 0.761; WRMR = 1.592).
Co-Occurrence of Binge Eating Disorder With Psychiatric and Medical Disorders
Javaras, K. N., Pope, H. G., Lalonde, J. K., Roberts, J. L., Nillni, Y. I., Laird, N. M., Bulik, C. M., Crow, S. J., McElroy, S. L., Walsh, B. T., Tsuang, M. T., Rosenthal, N. R., & Hudson, J. I. (2008). Co-occurrence of binge eating disorder with psychiatric and medical disorders. The Journal of clinical psychiatry, 69(2), 266–273. https://doi.org/10.4088/jcp.v69n0213 From the original research’s abstract: “Full BED co-occurred significantly with bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, bulimia nervosa, most anxiety disorders, substance use disorders, irritable bowel syndrome, and fibromyalgia.”
Co-Occurrence of Binge Eating Disorder With Psychiatric and Medical Disorders
Javaras, K. N., Pope, H. G., Lalonde, J. K., Roberts, J. L., Nillni, Y. I., Laird, N. M., Bulik, C. M., Crow, S. J., McElroy, S. L., Walsh, B. T., Tsuang, M. T., Rosenthal, N. R., & Hudson, J. I. (2008). Co-occurrence of binge eating disorder with psychiatric and medical disorders. The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 69(2), 266–273. https://doi.org/10.4088/jcp.v69n0213 From the research article’s abstract: “Background: Prior studies suggest that certain psychiatric and medical disorders co-occur with binge eating disorder (BED). However, there has been no large, community-based study with diagnoses made by clinician interviewers. We used data from that type of study to assess the co-occurrence of various psychiatric and medical disorders with DSM-IV BED and with subthreshold BED. Method: From October 2002 to July 2004, we interviewed 150 probands with BED, 150 probands without BED, and 888 of their first-degree relatives (135 of whom had BED, and 54 of whom met specific partial criteria for BED that we defined as subthreshold BED). Study participants were interviewed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV to assess BED and other psychiatric disorders and a supplemental structured interview to assess certain medical disorders; participants also completed a self-report questionnaire, the Bad Things Scale. For each psychiatric and medical disorder, we calculated the age- and sex-adjusted co-occurrence odds ratio: the odds of having that disorder in one’s lifetime among individuals with (full or subthreshold) lifetime BED compared to individuals without lifetime BED. We also used subjects’ responses to the Bad Things Scale to adjust for adversity over-reporting, a type of response bias that could result in spurious findings of co-occurrence. Results: Full BED co-occurred significantly with bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, bulimia nervosa but not anorexia nervosa, most anxiety disorders, substance use disorders, body dysmorphic disorder, kleptomania, irritable bowel syndrome, and fibromyalgia. .”
Adaptation and validation of the Hungarian version of the Yale Food Addiction Scale for Children
Magyar, É. E., Tényi, D., Gearhardt, A., Jeges, S., Abaligeti, G., Tóth, Á. L., Janszky, J., Molnár, D., Tényi, T., & Csábi, G. (2018). Adaptation and validation of the Hungarian version of the Yale Food Addiction Scale for Children. Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 7(1), 181–188. https://doi.org/10.1556/2006.7.2018.03 From the research article’s abstract: “Childhood obesity proves to be an important public health issue, since it serves as a potential risk factor for multiple diseases. Food addiction could also serve as an important etiological factor. As childhood obesity plays a serious issue also in Hungary, we aimed to adapt and validate the Hungarian version of the Yale Food Addiction Scale for Children (H-YFAS-C). A total of 191 children were assessed with the H-YFAS-C and the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI). The following psychometric properties were analyzed: internal consistency, construct validity, convergent, and discriminant validity. A good construct validity was revealed by confirmatory factor analysis (RMSEA = 0.0528, CFI = 0.896, χ2 value = 279.06). Question 25 proved to have no significant effect on its group and was removed from further analyses. The Kuder–Richardson 20 coefficient indicated good internal consistency (K20 = 0.82). With the use of the eight EDI subscales, a good convergent and discriminant validity could be determined. Food addiction was diagnosed in 8.9% of children. The mean symptom count was 1.7 ± 1.2 (range: 0–7). Females were more often diagnosed with food addiction than males (p = .016; OR = 3.6, 95% CI: 1.2–10.6). BMI percentiles were significantly higher in children with diagnosed food addiction (p = .003). There proved to be no correlation between age and the occurrence of food addiction. Our results show that H-YFAS-C is a good and reliable tool for addictive-like behavior assessment.”
Food Addiction and associations with mental health symptoms: a systematic review with meta-analysis
Burrows, T., Kay-Lambkin, F., Pursey, K., Skinner, J., & Dayas, C. (2018). Food addiction and associations with mental health symptoms: a systematic review with meta-analysis. J Hum Nutr Diet, 31(4), 544-572. https://doi.org/10.1111/jhn.12532 Conclusions: “A significant, positive relationship exists between food addiction and mental health symptoms, although the results of the present study highlight the complexity of this relationship.”
Food Addiction and Binge Eating: Lessons Learned from Animal Models
Novelle, M. G., & Diéguez, C. (2018). Food Addiction and Binge Eating: Lessons Learned from Animal Models. Nutrients, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10010071 From the research article’s abstract: “The feeding process is required for basic life, influenced by environment cues and tightly regulated according to demands of the internal milieu by regulatory brain circuits. Although eating behaviour cannot be considered “addictive” under normal circumstances, people can become “addicted” to this behaviour, similarly to how some people are addicted to drugs. The symptoms, cravings and causes of “eating addiction” are remarkably similar to those experienced by drug addicts, and both drug-seeking behaviour as eating addiction share the same neural pathways. However, while the drug addiction process has been highly characterised, eating addiction is a nascent field. In fact, there is still a great controversy over the concept of “food addiction”.