Appetite Patterns Research Articles

The association between appetite and eating behaviors among Chinese female university students

BackgroundYoung females are at a higher risk of developing unhealthy eating behaviors. This study investigated the relationship between appetitive traits and eating behaviors among female university students. MethodsThe study participants were 520 female university students from a public university in Eastern China. Appetitive traits were assessed using the Chinese version of the Adult Eating Behavior Questionnaire (C-AEBQ). Data on eating behaviors, including food intake frequency, meal regularity, and dieting behavior, were collected using self-administered questionnaires. The body mass index (BMI) was calculated using self-reported data. Pearson's and Spearman's correlations were used to correlate appetitive traits with BMI and eating behaviors. Latent profile analysis (LPA) was used to identify different appetitive patterns, and logistic regression was used to analyze the relationship between different appetitive patterns and eating behaviors. ResultsTwo food-approach traits (food enjoyment and emotional over-eating) were positively correlated with BMI, while two food-avoidance traits (slowness in eating and satiety responsiveness) showed negative correlations. Food responsiveness was linked to a higher intake of delivered food, spicy food, and sugar-sweetened beverages, whereas satiety responsiveness was correlated with more frequent meal skipping. The LPA identified four appetitive patterns: food approachers, food approachers with emotional under-eating, food avoiders, and food avoiders with emotional over-eating. Food avoiders had significantly lower BMI than the other groups. Compared to food approachers, food avoiders skipped breakfast more frequently, and food avoiders with emotional over-eating skipped both breakfast and lunch more often. After adjusting for BMI, appetitive patterns showed no significant relationship with dieting behavior. ConclusionAmong female university students, appetitive patterns correlated with eating behaviors, and students with food-avoidance patterns had a higher risk of meal irregularity. These findings emphasize the importance of implementing trait- and pattern-specific approaches to promote healthy eating behaviors among female university students.

A Case Report Review on PICA : Non-food Tastes Better to Their Palate

It is an indulgence of eating other than food (non-food). EXAMPLE: stones, paper, soap, bricks, sand/mud, chalk etc. This may cause a lot of vitamin deficiency and the oral cavity is distraught by eating such things (hard). It occurs at an early age due to poverty, lack of guidance, and craving for non-nutritive substances because of their appetite pattern.

Role of Exendin-4 in Brain Insulin Resistance, Mitochondrial Function, and Neurite Outgrowth in Neurons under Palmitic Acid-Induced Oxidative Stress.

Glucagon like peptide 1 (GLP-1) is an incretin hormone produced by the gut and brain, and is currently being used as a therapeutic drug for type 2 diabetes and obesity, suggesting that it regulates abnormal appetite patterns, and ameliorates impaired glucose metabolism. Many researchers have demonstrated that GLP-1 agonists and GLP-1 receptor agonists exert neuroprotective effects against brain damage. Palmitic acid (PA) is a saturated fatty acid, and increases the risk of neuroinflammation, lipotoxicity, impaired glucose metabolism, and cognitive decline. In this study, we investigated whether or not Exentin-4 (Ex-4; GLP-1 agonist) inhibits higher production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in an SH-SY5Y neuronal cell line under PA-induced apoptosis conditions. Moreover, pre-treatment with Ex-4 in SH-SY5Y neuronal cells prevents neural apoptosis and mitochondrial dysfunction through several cellular signal pathways. In addition, insulin sensitivity in neurons is improved by Ex-4 treatment under PA-induced insulin resistance. Additionally, our imaging data showed that neuronal morphology is improved by EX-4 treatment, in spite of PA-induced neuronal damage. Furthermore, we identified that Ex-4 inhibits neuronal damage and enhanced neural complexity, such as neurite length, secondary branches, and number of neurites from soma in PA-treated SH-SY5Y. We observed that Ex-4 significantly increases neural complexity, dendritic spine morphogenesis, and development in PA treated primary cortical neurons. Hence, we suggest that GLP-1 administration may be a crucial therapeutic solution for improving neuropathology in the obese brain.

The effect of playback of 22-kHz and 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations on rat behaviors assessed with a modified open-field test

Juvenile and adult rats emit two affectively different types of ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs), namely aversive 22-kHz and appetitive 50-kHz USVs. Aversive 22-kHz USVs are considered to be alarm calls that communicate negative affective states to conspecific receivers. Although the alarming effects of playback of 22-kHz USVs were reported recently, behavioral data showing those effects are still not abundant. Appetitive 50-kHz USVs are considered to communicate positive affective states to conspecific receivers, to pace and coordinate social behavior. In line with this, playback of 50-kHz USVs has been found to initiate behavioral activation and induce approach behavior in receiver rats. However, most of these playback studies have used male 50-kHz USVs; thus, it seems to remain unclear whether female 50-kHz USVs exert a similar social attractant effect on male rats. To investigate these issues, we performed modified open-field tests, during which USVs were continuously presented for 15 min to male receivers. In these tests, if negative affective changes are evoked in subject rats, the time spent in the open arena decreases, while the time spent on defensive behaviors increases. In contrast, when positive affective changes are evoked, the opposite phenomenon is observed. Playback of male aversive 22-kHz USVs induced anxiety-related defensive responses in receivers. However, playback of female appetitive frequency-modulated (FM) 50-kHz USVs increased opposite, appetitive pattern of exploratory behavior with increased exploration. The results indicate that playback of male aversive 22-kHz and female appetitive 50-kHz USVs might induce behavioral responses probably associated with negative and positive affective states in male rats, respectively, suggesting the validity of rat USVs as an animal model of vocal communication of emotion.

Pica - an eating disorder: A report and review

Pica disorder is considered to be an inappropriate behavior characterized by an appetite pattern and craving for non-nutritive substances. Pica usually does not exhibit life-threatening situations, but at times it can create severe complications due to this psychogenic behavior of an individual. Clinical presentation of pica is highly variable and can be associated with the specific characteristics of the resulting medical conditions and the ingested substances. Weird consumption pattern can lead to various changes in the hard and soft tissues of the oral cavity, which can further lead to ulcerations and pulpal pain. Herein, we report a case of pica syndrome with oral manifestation due to consumption of mud.

Reinforcement learning in a bio-connectionist model based in the thalamo-cortical neural circuit

Abstract In a previous study, we presented a program to simulate a particular dynamic of the thalamo-cortical biological system. The method used was called bio-connectionism which linked the thalamo-cortical mechanism reproduced with animal perception. In this presentation, a reinforcement learning program is supported by this mechanism. In a game world designed to test the model developed, the agent is assigned to a character that must learn by trial and error from its own experience upon recognition of aversive and appetitive patterns. The results confirm, support and extend the notion of configuration, a term familiar with sparse coding principles. If, as it is documented, this mechanism observed in sensory areas can be thought as condition of perception, the brain areas taken together – each in its interaction with a respective sub-thalamic nucleus – are suspected to be considered as condition of cognition. We introduce some philosophical questions derived from the experimental results in the discussion section.

Gastric emptying rate, glycemic and appetite response to a liquid meal in lean and overweight males

The effect of body weight status on appetite, glycemic response and gastric emptying rate was investigated using a liquid meal. Lean and overweight males rated their subjective appetite with blood samples collected for measurement of glucose, biomarkers of appetite and gastric emptying rate for 3 h following consumption of the isocaloric test meal. Overweight participants had a higher rating on postprandial hunger (p < 0.001), preoccupation with food (p < 0.001) and desire to eat (p < 0.001), with fullness being lower (p = 0.001). Postprandial plasma concentration of cholecystokinin-33 was lower (p = 0.007) and total ghrelin was higher (p = 0.012) in overweight participants. A delayed gastric emptying rate was observed in lean participants. There was no difference in postprandial glycemic response (p = 0.189). These results suggest the postprandial appetite pattern was different between lean and overweight males when consuming an isocaloric meal. This may have implications for overweight individuals who attempt to lose weight through restricting food intake.

Experience of Pain in the Elderly in Relation to Mood, Anxiety and Physical Quality of Life in a PACE/BHL Program

Among the reasons elderly patients present for medical care, pain is one of the most common. It is estimated that the prevalence rate can range from 27-51% of the population in those over 65 and in up to 70% in those 85 and older. Chronic pain is commonly accompanied by emotional stress, irritability, anxiety, depression, social withdrawal, disturbed sleep and appetite patterns and overall negative impact on quality of life. To date, a limited amount of research exists on the correlation of chronic pain in the elderly with these variables.

Impact of Divorce on Children: Developmental Considerations

Although divorce can have significant negative impact on children, a variety of protective factors can increase the likelihood of long-term positive psychological adjustment. • Exposure to high levels of parental conflict is predictive of poor emotional adjustment by the child regardless of the parents' marital status. • Epidemiologic data reveal that custody and parenting arrangements are evolving, with more emphasis on joint custody and access to both parents by the child. • Pediatricians' knowledge of childhood development is essential in providing anticipatory guidance to parents throughout the divorce process and beyond.

Association between Children’s Appetite Patterns and Maternal Feeding Practices

This study explored associations between children’s appetites and maternal feeding practices. The participants, 614 parents of 3- to 6-year-old children from kindergartens in Tokyo, Japan, completed self-administered questionnaires. The children’s appetites were measured using the Enjoyment of Food (EF) and Food Responsiveness (FR) scales of the Child Eating Behaviour Questionnaire. Using cluster analysis, we examined three appetite patterns (“both low,” “high EF and low FR,” and “both high”). The three appetite patterns were associated with children’s obesity index. The “both low” pattern was associated with the highest maternal pressure to eat. The “high EF and low FR” patterns were related to an established snack time. The “both high” pattern was associated with higher maternal instrumental feeding compared with the “high EF and low FR” types. The results of this study will facilitate the development of targeted interventions and better parental guidance on maternal feeding practices and their association with children’s eating behaviours.

Association between Children’s Appetite Patterns and Maternal Feeding Practices

Association between Children’s Appetite Patterns and Maternal Feeding Practices

Disturbed Appetite Patterns and Nutrient Intake in Peritoneal Dialysis Patients

Malnutrition is common among peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. Reduced nutrient intake contributes to this. It has long been assumed that this reflects disturbed appetite. We set out to define the appetite profiles of a group of PD patients using a novel technique. Prospective, cross-sectional comparison of PD patients versus controls. Teaching hospital dialysis unit. 39 PD patients and 42 healthy controls. Visual analog ratings were recorded at hourly intervals to generate daily profiles for hunger and fullness. Summary statistics were generated to compare the groups. Food intake was measured using 3-day dietary records. Hunger and fullness profiles. Derived hunger and fullness scores. Controls demonstrated peaks of hunger before mealtimes, with fullness scores peaking after meals. The PD profiles had much reduced premeal hunger peaks. A postmeal reduction in hunger was evident, but the rest of the trace was flat. The PD fullness profile was also flatter than in the controls. Mean scores were similar despite the marked discrepancy in the profiles. The PD group had lower peak hunger and less diurnal variability in their hunger scores. They also demonstrated much less change in fullness rating around mealtimes, while the mean and peak fullness scores were little different. The reported nutrient intake was significantly lower for PD. The data suggest that PD patients normalize their mean appetite perception at a lower level of nutrient intake than controls, suggesting that patient-reported appetite may be misleading in clinical practice. There is a loss of the usual daily variation for the PD group, which may contribute to their reduced food intake. The technique described here could be used to assess the impact of interventions upon the abnormal PD appetite profile.

Chemical and visual control of feeding and escape behaviors in the channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus

Channel catfish, maintained individually in aquaria with dark substrate, responded to visual stimuli from above with escape behavior and to amino acid stimuli with feeding behavior. Feeding behavior was composed of a) appetitive patterns, such as barbel movements, orienting posture, and search swimming and b) consummatory patterns that included a halt in swimming, turning, snapping-biting, ingestion, mastication, and swallowing. The conditioning procedure, which consisted of 90 s presentations of a single amino acid followed by a food reward, influenced the duration and speed of the search swim. Swimming behavior was quantified by counting the number of turns greater than 90°. Catfish turned 40–75 times to the conditioned stimuli, l-proline and l-arginine, but only 20–40 times to the nonconditioned stimuli. Olfaction rather than taste was involved in the conditioned response to l-proline because the highest possible contact concentration (3 × 10 −6 M) of l-proline within the stimulus eddies was at least 30 times lower than the estimated l-proline electrophysiological taste threshold (>10 −4 M).

Bupropion and Fluoxetine in Depressive Subtypes

AbstractAn 8-week open, non-randomized study compared the dopamine-specific antidepressant, bupropion, to the serotonin-specific antidepressant, fluoxetine. Of the 57 patients, 10 met DSM-IIIR criteria for bipolar depression. The other 47 met DSM-IIIR criteria for major depressive disorder. Of these, 23 were subclassified as “atypical” whereas 24 were “typical” based on sleep and appetite patterns. In bipolar patients, depression (as indicated by fall in Beck Depression Inventory [BDI] score) improved significantly in eight of nine patients following administration of bupropion (the mean fall = 16.3 [p < 0.003]). In atypical depression patients, depression as measured by BDI improved significantly after bupropion, but not after fluoxetine. Significant improvement was seen following bupropion in 9 of 14, but only in 2 of 9 following fluoxetine. In typical depression, BDI dropped 6.0 (p = 0.09) after bupropion, and 11.8 (p = 0.002) after fluoxetine. Significant improvement was seen after bupropion in 2 or 1...

Tests for interocular transfer after tectal commissure transection in goldfish

Goldfish with and without tectal commissure transections were tested under two training paradigms for interocular transfer of appetitive pattern discriminations in a T-maze. In Experiment 1, a standard procedure produced transfer in intact fish, but disrupted transfer in fish with lesions. In Experiment 2, a modified procedure afforded the naive eye-hemisphere daily practice in the nonspecific monocular components of the task. This produced successful transfer in both normal fish and fish with lesions. The results are related to previous studies of interhemispheric visual transfer in fish.

THE ETHOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF INCUBATION BEHAVIOUR

Summary.An integrative survey of behaviour mechanisms in birds, known to contribute to securing the proper conditions for the development of eggs during incubation, has been attempted. Our ideas of these mechanisms, schematically represented in Fig. 1, are mainly based on work with the Herring Gull, but, where possible, are compared with those on other birds.In addition to incubation (=sitting on eggs) several other activities of the fixed‐pattern type can be observed in a bird on its nest. Through statistical analysis of quantitative observations groups of these activities can be proved to have causal factors in common; consequently these groups are distinguished as separate systems (instincts). Different instincts which share common causal factors have been placed under the same superordinate instinct. A study of the biological significance of behaviour elements usually shows separate instincts to serve different functions. It should be stressed that distinguishing these instincts is of temporary value, helpful at this stage of the analysis as a shorthand description, but does not solve at all the problem of what exactly determines the grouping of behaviour elements. Inhibitive as well as stimulative relations between instincts have been found.Incubation, with the appetitive patterns of egg‐retrieving and settling, belongs to one system: the incubation instinct. It is argued that this system has inhibitive relations with the instincts serving preening, escape, and nest‐building, although with the latter it could also be shown to have causal factors in common.The degree to which the incubation instinct is activated depends—apart from other factors not mentioned here—on the weather and on the total value of the stimulus situation “nest with eggs in territory”. The latter situation seems to have a priming effect on the incubation instinct as well as a releasing effect on the activities egg‐retrieving and settling. The analysis of the mechanisms for evaluating this situation has been most thoroughly investigated for the releasing effect of the egg. In the Herring Gull this effect is the greater the more numerous, the smaller, the darker and the more contrasting the speckles are, the more the colour matches a light greenish tint and the greater the size of the egg. However, characters of shape are of hardly any importance. It seems likely that at least part of these “differential preferences” are due, not to the receptors, but to more centrally situated nervous mechanisms.Whereas an intact nest with eggs of high value mainly stimulates the incubation instinct, nest disturbances or eggs of low value also activate the tendency to leave the nest (escape instinct). This simultaneous activation of two conflicting tendencies is considered to cause an increase of preening and building, the rate between the frequencies of each depending on the relative strength of the tendencies.Reactions to disturbances at nest or clutch not only occur before the bird settles on the nest, but also during brooding. Incubation could be shown to continue effectively only when the proper feed‐back stimuli are received by the tactile‐ and thermo‐receptors of the brood patches; otherwise the appetitive activities of incubation set in, often mixed with (displacement) building and preening. Also under these circumstances building and preening are thought to arise in consequence of a conflict, as the abnormal tactile and temperature stimuli must stimulate the tendency to escape. Moreover, deviations of the egg temperature from normal lead to the performance of behaviour patterns serving the temperature regulation of the bird, which are also subordinate, together with the chemical heat‐regulation, to the thermo‐regulatory centre of the hypothalamus.