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Greater Reward‐Related Neuronal Response to Hedonic Foods in Women Compared with Men
Author(s) -
Legget Kristina T.,
Cornier MarcAndre,
Bessesen Daniel H.,
Mohl Brianne,
Thomas Elizabeth A.,
Tregellas Jason R.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
obesity
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.438
H-Index - 199
eISSN - 1930-739X
pISSN - 1930-7381
DOI - 10.1002/oby.22082
Subject(s) - functional magnetic resonance imaging , insula , obesity , nucleus accumbens , psychology , reward system , audiology , medicine , neuroscience , dopamine
Objective The current study aimed to identify how sex influences neurobiological responses to food cues, particularly those related to hedonic eating, and how this relates to obesity propensity, using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Methods Adult men and women who were either obesity resistant (OR) or obesity prone (OP) underwent fMRI while viewing visual food cues (hedonic foods, neutral foods, and nonfood objects) in both fasted and fed states. Results When fasted, a significant sex effect on the response to hedonic vs. neutral foods was observed, with greater responses in women than men in the nucleus accumbens ( P = 0.0002) and insula ( P = 0.010). Sex‐based differences were not observed in the fed state. No significant group effects (OP vs. OR) or group‐by‐sex interactions were observed in fasted or fed states. Conclusions Greater fasted responses to hedonic food cues in reward‐related brain regions were observed in women compared with men, suggesting that women may be more sensitive to the reward value of hedonic foods than men when fasted. This may indicate sex‐dependent neurophysiology underlying eating behaviors.