Abstract
ObjectivesThis study examines whether belief in the food addiction construct is associated with support for obesity-related policies (e.g., restrictions on foods served in schools and workplace cafeterias, subsidies on fruits and vegetables), while simultaneously examining other factors associated with policy support (e.g., political party affiliation).DesignCross-sectional.SettingOnline Community.Participants200 individuals were recruited through Amazon Mechanical Turk.MeasurementsParticipants (n = 193) responded to three questions about belief in food addiction and a measure evaluating support for 13 obesity-related policy initiatives. Individuals also completed the modified Yale Food Addiction Scale (mYFAS), self-reported height and weight, and provided demographic information (age, gender, race, political party affiliation).ResultsBelief in food addiction was significantly associated with greater support for obesity-related initiatives, even when accounting for the significant associations of age, gender, and political party. Belief in food addiction and political party both had moderate effect sizes for predicting support for obesity-related policy. There was an interaction between age and belief in food addiction, with significant associations with policy support for both younger and older individuals, though the effect was larger for younger participants.ConclusionThe current study provides evidence that belief in food addiction is associated with increased obesity-related policy support, comparable to the influence of one’s political party. Growing evidence for the role of an addictive process in obesity may have important implications for public support of obesity-related policy initiatives.
Highlights
Food addiction is a topic of public interest and scientific debate [1, 2]
Belief in food addiction was significantly associated with greater support for obesity-related initiatives, even when accounting for the significant associations of age, gender, and political party
There was an interaction between age and belief in food addiction, with significant associations with policy support for both younger and older individuals, though the effect was larger for younger participants
Summary
Evidence for the hypothesis that some individuals may experience an addictive-like response to certain foods is growing. Eating-related problems (e.g., obesity, binge eating) and addictive disorders share behavioral characteristics, such as a loss of control over consumption and continued use despite negative consequences [8,9,10]. The specific addictive agent in food has not been investigated, which remains one of the major points of criticism for the food addiction hypothesis [2] Though more research is warranted to identify the addictive ingredient(s) in highly processed foods and the individual characteristics that may make one vulnerable to developing food addiction, behavioral and biological evidence exists for the concept of addictive-like eating
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