Abstract
Background: Food addiction is believed to play a role in the development of obesity. Acute exercise has been associated with reduced cravings for addictive substances. The purpose of this investigation is to determine if food addictive behavior is influenced by physical activity in college-aged students. Methods: 241 college-aged students (18-24 years of age; 55 male, 186 female) were recruited and completed the Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0 (YFAS) and the International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form (IPAQ-S). Results: Only 7.9% of participants were diagnosed with moderate (2.5%) or severe (5.4%) food addiction (FA). BMI was higher in participants with food addiction (No FA=24.1±0.3 FA=26.9±1.9, M±SE, p=0.02); however, no differences were found in vigorous (No FA=1851±251 MET-min/week, FA=1920±799 MET-min/week), moderate (No FA=777+107 MET-min/week, FA=869+409 MET-min/week), or walking (No FA=1262±139 MET-min/week, FA=2051+583 MET-min/week) activity. The distribution of participants with Low, Moderate, and High levels of physical activity was similar between No FA and FA. Participants with High (2.10±0.27 symptoms) levels of physical activity displayed more symptoms of food addictive behavior than participants with Moderate (1.41±0.15 symptoms) and Low (1.06±0.27 symptoms) levels (p=0.03). Conclusions: The results of this investigation suggest that high levels of physical activity may be associated with more symptoms of food addiction.
Highlights
More than 1/3 of Americans (36.5%) are obese. [1] While obesity has multifactorial origins, there has been some recent focus on the role of food addiction on the development on obesity, its maintenance, and lack of response to treatment
[5] Previous work with the Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0 (YFAS) has revealed that people with food addiction display similar behavioral characteristics to those seen in people with other types of substance addictions such as greater impulsivity and emotion dysregulation. [6,7] The similarity between food addiction and the addiction to other substances has been strengthened by the work of Burger and Stice
Body mass index (BMI) was higher in participants with food addiction (FA) compared to those without FA (No FA) (No FA=24.1±0.3, FA=26.9±1.9; p=0,02); the presence or absence of FA did not influence the level of total, vigorous, moderate, or walking activity reported by participants (Table 1; Figure 1)
Summary
More than 1/3 of Americans (36.5%) are obese. [1] While obesity has multifactorial origins, there has been some recent focus on the role of food addiction on the development on obesity, its maintenance, and lack of response to treatment. Data Analysis: Subjects were categorized by food addiction, food addictive symptoms, and level of physical activity. Subjects were categorized by the number of food addictive symptoms they displayed and placing them in to the previously described categories (none, mild, moderate, and severe).
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