High Energy Density Foods Research Articles

FMRI Food Cue Reactivity as a Predictor for BMI Change Following Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass (RYGB) or Diet Intervention.

Prevalence of severe obesity continues to increase, with only bariatric surgery showing long-term efficacy for sustained weight loss. Individuals with severe obesity (vs normal weight) show greater fMRI responsivity to high energy dense (ED) vs low ED food cues and reduced responsivity post-surgery. We examined responsivity to high vs low ED cues pre-intervention in association with postsurgical (RYGB) or dietary weight-loss (dWL) change in BMI at 4 and 18 mo. Region of interest (ROI) analysis employed separate ANCOVA models; group as single factor with three levels and baseline activation and interaction with group covarying for age and gender as nuisance covariates. Significant results were identified at p < 0.1 false discovery rate (FDR) corrected, following multiple comparisons across ROIs. In the precentral gyrus (motor and motor readiness area), higher baseline activation was associated with greater %BMI reduction in RYGB at 4 and 18 mo and less %BMI reduction in dWL at 4 mo (p = 0.006 uncorrected, P < 0.1 FDR corrected). The findings show opposite directionality in predicting change in BMI for RYGB vs. dWL from responsivity to high vs low ED food cues in the precentral gyrus. Greater baseline motor planning to ingest high ED foods may be associated with reduced weight loss in dWL, and with greater weight loss in RYGB due to neuromodulatory effects of surgery.

Diet Quality and Food Prices Modify Associations between Genetic Susceptibility to Obesity and Adiposity Outcomes.

The role of the retail food environment in obesity risk is unclear, which may be due in part to the lack of consideration of individual differences in the responsivity to food cues. This cross-sectional investigation geo-temporally linked the CARTaGENE biobank (including genetic, dietary, lifestyle, and anthropometric data) with in-store retail food environment data to examine interactions between a polygenic risk score (PRS) for obesity and (1) diet quality (n = 6807) and (2) in-store retail food measures (n = 3718). The outcomes included adiposity-related measures and diet quality assessed using the 2010 Canadian-adapted Healthy Eating Index. A vegetable:soft drink ratio was constructed for each retail measure to assess the relative healthfulness of exposures. Generalized linear models adjusted for individual and neighborhood socio-demographic factors were used to evaluate main and interactive effects. Diet quality significantly modified the association between polygenic risk of obesity and body mass index, waist circumference, and body fat percent. A significant interaction was also observed between PRS and regular price of vegetables in relation to soft drinks on waist circumference. These results replicate previous reports of diet moderating polygenic risk of obesity and suggest that prices of low vs. high-energy density foods are an intervention target to address population obesity rates.

The effect of a liking norm message on the motivation to obtain and consume low and high energy dense foods.

The effect of a liking norm message on the motivation to obtain and consume low and high energy dense foods.

Obesity and Hunger Threaten the Foundations of Child Health

Obesity and Hunger Threaten the Foundations of Child Health

Energy Density of New Food Products Targeted to Children.

High dietary energy density (ED) is linked to childhood obesity and poor diet quality. The Australian Health Star Rating (HSR) system aims to assist consumers in making healthful food choices. This cross-sectional study used 2014–2018 data from the Mintel Global New Products Database to describe the ED of new food products targeted to children (5–12 years) released after the introduction of HSR and examine relationships between ED and HSR. Products were categorised by ED (low < 630 kJ/100 g, medium 630–950 kJ/100 g, high > 950 kJ/100 g) and HSR (no, HSR < 2.5 low, HSR ≥ 2.5 high). Non-parametric statistics were used to examine ED and HSR. A total of 548 products targeted children: 21% low, 5% medium, 74% high ED. One hundred products displayed an HSR: 24% low, 76% high; 53 products with both high HSR and ED. The EDs of products differed by HSR (p < 0.05), but both group’s medians (HSR < 2.5: 1850 kJ/100 g, HSR ≥ 2.5: 1507 kJ/100 g) were high. A high proportion of new products had a high ED, and the HSR of these foods did not consistently discriminate between ED levels, particularly for high ED foods. Policies to promote lower ED foods and better alignment between ED and HSR may improve childhood obesity and diet quality.

Targeting binge eating in bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder using inhibitory control training and implementation intentions: a feasibility trial

This trial examined the feasibility, acceptability, and effect sizes of clinical outcomes of an intervention that combines inhibitory control training (ICT) and implementation intentions (if-then planning) to target binge eating and eating disorder psychopathology. Seventy-eight adult participants with bulimia nervosa or binge eating disorder were randomly allocated to receive food-specific, or general, ICT and if-then planning for 4 weeks. Recruitment and retention rates at 4 weeks (97.5% and 79.5%, respectively) met the pre-set cut-offs. The pre-set adherence to the intervention was met for the ICT sessions (84.6%), but not for if-then planning (53.4%). Binge eating frequency and eating disorder psychopathology decreased in both intervention groups at post-intervention (4 weeks) and follow-up (8 weeks), with moderate to large effect sizes. There was a tendency for greater reductions in binge eating frequency and eating disorders psychopathology (i.e. larger effect sizes) in the food-specific intervention group. Across both groups, ICT and if-then planning were associated with small-to-moderate reductions in high energy-dense food valuation (post-intervention), food approach (post-intervention and follow-up), anxiety (follow-up), and depression (follow-up). Participants indicated that both interventions were acceptable. The study findings reveal that combined ICT and if-then planning is associated with reductions in binge eating frequency and eating disorder psychopathology and that the feasibility of ICT is promising, while improvements to if-then planning condition may be needed.

Sensitization of the reinforcing value of food: a novel risk factor for overweight in adolescents.

Background and ObjectivesThe relative reinforcing value (RRV) of food is associated with increased energy intake and obesity and increases in RRV of food after repeated intake (sensitization) are related cross-sectionally and prospectively to higher BMI in adults. We examined the factors, such as delay discounting (DD), associated with sensitization of RRV of high energy density (HED) and low energy density (LED) food and how sensitization relates to zBMI in adolescents. We hypothesized that sensitization to HED food would be positively associated with zBMI, that sensitization to LED food would be negatively associated with zBMI, that DD would be associated with HED sensitization, and that LED sensitization and DD would moderate the relationships between HED sensitization and zBMI.Subjects and MethodsA population-based sample of 207 adolescents without obesity, aged 12 – 14 years was studied from June 2016 – March 2019. The RRV of LED and HED foods were measured before and after two weeks of daily consumption along with zBMI and other potential factors related to eating and weight, including dietary restraint, hunger, food liking, and delay discounting (DD). Hierarchical regression models were used to determine the associations between these factors and sensitization and zBMI. We also examined LED sensitization and DD as potential moderators of the relationship between sensitization and zBMI.ResultsAs hypothesized, dietary restraint and sensitization to HED food were associated with greater zBMI. Contrary to our original hypotheses, DD was not associated with sensitization, there was no relationship between sensitization to LED food and zBMI and neither LED sensitization or DD moderated the relationship between HED sensitization and zBMI.ConclusionsSensitization to repeated intake of HED food was associated with higher zBMI in adolescents without obesity. Sensitization may be a novel behavioral phenotype that may relate to overweight in youth.

Contribution of away-from-home food to the energy and nutrient intake among Brazilian adolescents.

To compare the contribution of different food consumption places to the energy and nutrient intake among Brazilian adolescents. We analysed data from the Study of Cardiovascular Risk in Adolescents - ERICA, carried out in 2013-2014. Foods were categorised into thirty-three food groups. Energy, nutrients and food groups were analysed according to home, public and private schools, and other places of foods consumption. Linear regression models were used to test the association between eating away from home and nutrient intake. Brazilian public and private schools. All adolescents who had undergone anthropometric evaluation and provided information through the questionnaires, including the 24-h recall (n 71740). The main portion of energy intake per day was consumed within the adolescent households (8112·776 kJ (1939 kcal), 95 % CI 1892, 1985). Away-from-home eating was reported by 52 % of students in a given day, but it contributed to only 15 % of total energy intake. This contribution was mainly due to high energy-dense food intake. The percentage contribution of foods consumed at public school and other places was very similar with respect to nutrients. However, food consumption at other places meant less intake of protein, fibre and Fe, in addition to increasing the intake of added sugar and fats. The frequency of food consumption outside the home by adolescents is high, although the main contribution to energy intake occurs at home, and despite the similarity of nutrients consumed in school and restaurants, the latter tends to worsen the nutritional quality of meals.

Energy Drinks Consumption Is Associated With Reduced Sleep Duration and Increased Energy-Dense Fast Foods Consumption Among School Students: A Cross-Sectional Study.

The study aimed to investigate the prevalence of energy drinks (EDs) consumption and its relationship with sociodemographic characteristics, eating habits, sleep duration, physical activity, and screen time among school students. A cross-sectional study was carried out with a total of 1611 students aged 10 to 18 years from the United Arab Emirates. ED consumption among school students was 27%, with less than half consumed at least one can of EDs 1 to 3 days per week. ED consumers were less likely to meet recommended sleep duration (37% vs 62%, P < .001), more likely to consume high energy-dense fast foods (33% vs 20%, P < .001), and more likely to spend more than 6 hours in front of a screen (40.5% vs 32.3%, P < .001). Students aged 14 to 18 years were twice as likely to consume EDs as students aged 10 to 13 years (P < .001). Overall, the use of EDs was associated with male sex, older age, not meeting sleep recommendations, high energy-dense fast food consumption, and spending a longer time in front of a screen. Educational intervention programs about ED consumption and healthy lifestyle habits are highly recommended.

Body composition and eating habits of workers with normal day and shift work

Abstract Introduction Recently, shift work and it consequences have been studied due to the strong relationship between shift work, sleep disorders and unhealthy eating habits, which could influence body composition and related health problems. Objectives To analyse the influence of shift work on body composition and eating habits of workers. Methodology Data collection was carried out through an interview with employees from a company in which data were collected such as sex, age, average number of hours of sleep and work schedule. An anthropometric evaluation was performed and weight, body fat mass percentage and waist circumference were measured. The height was self-reported. Individuals were also asked to answer to a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire. Data analysis was performed with descriptive and statistical analysis using U-Mann-Whitney test, in the IBM SPSS Statistics 25 program. Results The final sample consisted of 20 shift workers and 20 normal day workers. The mean BMI of normal day workers was 23.54 ± 3.19 kg/m2, and the average of the shift workers was 27.97 ± 5.48 kg/m2 (p = 0,001). Regarding the percentage of fat mass, the mean of the normal day sample was 28.53 ± 6.30% and the shift work sample showed an average of 29.85 ± 8.54% (p = 0,841). The shift sample reported a higher average daily intake of processed foods, high energy density food products with high fat and sugar content. Conclusion The higher BMI and fat percentage observed in shift workers comparing to normal day works are a topic of concern and could contribute to the assumption that the dynamics required by shift work can lead to changes in circadian rhythm, leading to metabolic alterations that could influence body composition and dietary choices.

The Situation Regarding School Canteen and Physical Activities among a Sample of Primary and Preparatory School Children in Egypt

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) come via (unhealthy diet, /physical inactivity, tobacco use and harmful use of alcohol); all increase the risk of dying from NCDs. Children consume approximately half of their total daily amount of energy at school. This work designed to get a baseline data on the condition with reference to school canteen and physical activities between primary and preparatory schools.The study was conducted among 1361 school children age (6 y- 13 y) randomly selected from schools in four governorates: Cairo, Qalyobia, Menofia and Giza. Two types of questionnaire were done during the study; which interview was conducted to the school children, and qualitative type (focus group discussion) for school children and teachers responsible for nutrition in the school. Results revealed that the majority of the sample used to buy from school canteens (1294). Food from canteen was Low nutritious value high energy. However, these recommendations were achieved by only (37.1%) of study sample, nearly two thirds (63.9%) of the sample didn't practice any physical activities, while 14% and 10.7% of them practice physical activity once and twice weekly respectively. One quarter of the sample (25.4%) stay in front of TV or computer less than 1 hour daily, and 58% of them stay 2 hours daily. Conclusion: The present study shows that low nutritious value high energy density food items represent the commonly consumed food brought from school canteens. The practice of physical activity is very little, and in case of practicing, it is practiced infrequently.

Exploring Changes in Event-Related Potentials After a Feasibility Trial of Inhibitory Training for Bulimia Nervosa and Binge Eating Disorder.

In a feasibility trial comparing two forms of combined inhibitory control training and goal planning (i.e., food-specific and general) among patients with bulimia nervosa (BN) and binge eating disorder (BED), we found evidence of symptomatic benefit, with stronger effects among participants receiving a food-specific intervention. The aim of the present study was to examine changes in behavioral outcomes and event-related potentials (ERPs; N2 and P3 amplitudes) from baseline to post-intervention that might suggest the mechanisms underpinning these effects. Fifty-five participants completed go/no-go tasks during two electroencephalography (EEG) sessions, at baseline and post-intervention. The go/no-go task included “go” cues to low energy-dense foods and non-foods, and “no-go” cues to high energy-dense foods and non-foods. Datasets with poor signal quality and/or outliers were excluded, leaving 48 participants (N = 24 BN; N = 24 BED) in the analyses. Participants allocated to the food-specific, compared to the general intervention group, showed significantly greater reductions in reaction time to low energy-dense foods, compared to non-foods, by post-intervention. Commission errors significantly increased from baseline to post-intervention, regardless of stimulus type (food vs. non-food) and intervention group (food-specific vs. general). There were no significant changes in omission errors. P3 amplitudes to “no-go” cues marginally, but non-significantly, decreased by post-intervention, but there was no significant interaction with stimulus type (high energy-dense food vs. non-food) or intervention group (food-specific vs. general). There were no significant changes in N2 amplitudes to “no-go” cues, N2 amplitudes to “go” cues, or P3 amplitudes to “go” cues from baseline to post-intervention. Training effects were only marginally captured by these event-related potentials. We discuss limitations to the task paradigm, including its two-choice nature, ease of completion, and validity, and give recommendations for future research exploring ERPs using inhibitory control paradigms.

Intake of saturated fat, trans fat, and added sugars by the Brazilian population: an indicator to evaluate diet quality

In recent decades, changes in the diet of Brazilians have been characterized by increased consumption of high energy-dense foods, rich in fat and sugar. This study was aimed at assessing diet quality based on the intake of foods with high content of solid fat and added sugars (SoFAS). The first Brazilian National Dietary Survey (2008-2009) is a nationwide representative cross-sectional study that collected food records from 34,003 ≥ 10-year-old individuals. A receiver-operating characteristic curve was used to determine the limit that would identify diets with high SoFAS content. The limit of 45% of total dietary energy provided by SoFAS was adopted to classify diets with excessive content. The SoFAS provided 53% of daily energy intake to adolescents, 49% to adults, and 48% to the elderly. A high intake of SoFAS was found in 64.7% of adolescents, 59.1% of adults, and 57.8% of the elderly. The contribution of SoFAS to daily energy intake increased with income in all age groups. Those with high consumption of SoFAS had higher intakes of sugar-sweetened beverages, cookies and cakes, processed meats, chips, candy and chocolate, and sandwiches and snacks, when compared with those that had moderate SoFAS intake (<45% of daily energy). The 45% cutoff point for the contribution of SoFAS foods to total energy intake, utilized to classify low-quality diets, allowed to point out the high-risk profile of the Brazilian diet.

Do perceived norms of social media users’ eating habits and preferences predict our own food consumption and BMI?

In laboratory studies, exposure to social norm messages conveying the typical eating behaviour of others has influenced participants' own consumption of food. Given the widespread use of social media, it is plausible that we are implicitly exposed to norms in our wider social circles, and that these influence our eating behaviour, and potentially, Body Mass Index (BMI). This study examined whether four perceived norms (perceived descriptive, injunctive, liking and frequency norms) about Facebook users' eating habits and preferences predicted participants' own food consumption and BMI. In a cross-sectional survey, men and women university students (n = 369; mean age = 22.1 years; mean BMI = 23.7) were asked to report their perceptions of Facebook users' consumption of, and preferences for, fruit, vegetables, energy-dense snacks and sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs), their own consumption of and preferences for these foods, and their BMI. Multiple linear regression revealed that perceived descriptive norms and perceived frequency norms about Facebook users' fruit and vegetable consumption were significant positive predictors of participants' own fruit and vegetable consumption (both ps < .01). Conversely, perceived injunctive norms about Facebook users' energy-dense snack and SSB consumption were significant positive predictors of participants’ own snack and SSB consumption (both ps < .05). However, perceived norms did not significantly predict BMI (all ps > .05). These findings suggest that perceived norms concerning actual consumption (descriptive and frequency) and norms related to approval (injunctive) may guide consumption of low and high energy-dense foods and beverages differently. Further work is required to establish whether these perceived norms also affect dietary behaviour over time.

The relationships between eating disorder pathology and relative reinforcing value of food, delay discounting, and related constructs in adolescents

Food is a primary reinforcer that motivates behavior in the absence of learning or conditioning. Both the relative reinforcing value (RRV) of food and delay discounting are associated with weight status. While dietary restraint and disinhibition have been shown to influence the RRV of food, limited work has examined the relationships between eating disorder pathology and RRV of food and delay discounting. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine how eating disorder pathology predicts RRV of food, proportion of food consumed, delay discounting, reinforcement pathology (i.e., high motivation to eat and high delay discounting), and sensitization of high energy dense food (HED; i.e., increases in RRV of HED food after daily repeated exposure). Participants were 167 adolescents ages 12–14 without obesity participating in a longitudinal study examining predictors of weight change who completed a series of laboratory assessments assessing the RRV of food of HED food, delay discounting, reinforcement pathology, sensitization of HED food, and a questionnaire assessing eating disorder pathology. Eating disorder pathology was not related to the RRV of food or delay discounting, but did predict reinforcement pathology and the sensitization of HED food. When explored by weight status, these relationships were only observed for those with overweight. There were no other significant relationships for either adolescents with normal weight or overweight. Given that weight status appeared to moderate some of the relationships between eating disorder pathology and reinforcement-related constructs, future work should examine how reinforcement pathology and eating disorder pathology are related to changes in weight status over time.

“Wrap healthy snacks with cool packaging” - A qualitative study of mothers’ portion size strategies for their children

Offering large portions of high energy dense (HED) foods increases overall energy intake in children, a potentially important contributing factor to childhood overweight and obesity. Packaging offers a simple heuristic to encourage healthy eating for nutrient dense foods and to downsize portions of HED foods. However, it is not clear how parents use packaging for portion control, nor how packaging might be used as a solution to offset large portions. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate mothers' portion strategies and how they use packaging to facilitate portion control for children. 21 mothers of 25 children aged 1–5 years participated in semi-structured interviews to identify strategies used by mothers for portioning snack and meal items. Mothers reported feeling confident in amounts offered to their children, and were unaware of, or did not apply, recommendations for age-appropriate portions of meal items and snacks. Mothers portioned according to child appetite, needs and characteristics, not necessarily age. They reported that their child was able to determine for themselves how much to consume. However, mothers also applied restrictions to some foods. No differences in considerations and strategies were found between different ethnic groups of British and Chinese mothers. Mothers reported that packaging was an important determinant of preferences and a useful, convenient means of portion control. To promote appropriate consumption norms in children, a packaging design concept is described to aid downsizing for a highly liked HED food. Future studies should examine how creative packaging solutions influence parents’ feeding practices and how this might influence dietary quality through user testing.

Increasing Energy Flux to Maintain Diet-Induced Weight Loss.

Long-term maintenance of weight loss requires sustained energy balance at the reduced body weight. This could be attained by coupling low total daily energy intake (TDEI) with low total daily energy expenditure (TDEE; low energy flux), or by pairing high TDEI with high TDEE (high energy flux). Within an environment characterized by high energy dense food and a lack of need for movement, it may be particularly difficult for weight-reduced individuals to maintain energy balance in a low flux state. Most of these individuals will increase body mass due to an inability to sustain the necessary level of food restriction. This increase in TDEI may lead to the re-establishment of high energy flux at or near the original body weight. We propose that following weight loss, increasing physical activity can effectively re-establish a state of high energy flux without significant weight regain. Although the effect of extremely high levels of physical activity on TDEE may be constrained by compensatory reductions in non-activity energy expenditure, moderate increases following weight loss may elevate energy flux and encourage physiological adaptations favorable to weight loss maintenance, including better appetite regulation. It may be time to recognize that few individuals are able to re-establish energy balance at a lower body weight without permanent increases in physical activity. Accordingly, there is an urgent need for more research to better understand the role of energy flux in long-term weight maintenance.

Does exposure to socially endorsed images of food on social media affect our consumption of low and high energy dense foods?

Does exposure to socially endorsed images of food on social media affect our consumption of low and high energy dense foods?

Weight Status and Attentional Biases Toward Foods: Impact of Implicit Olfactory Priming.

Objective: Numerous studies highlight the involvement of cognitive factors in the development and maintenance of obesity. We aimed to measure attentional biases (AB) toward foods (i.e., the individual tendency to automatically orient one’s attention toward food stimuli) in normal-weight (NW) individuals and those with overweight (OW) and obesity (OB). We evaluated whether implicit or explicit exposure to olfactory food cues could modify AB.Methods: Eighty-five participants with different weight statuses took part in this experiment. We measured AB toward food pictures with an adapted visual probe task and the variations in AB, while participants were primed with olfactory food cues (within-subject design: no odor/low-energy dense food odor/high-energy dense food odor). Odors were non-attentively perceived during session 1 (implicit condition) and attentively perceived during session 2 (explicit condition).Results: Our results highlighted AB toward food pictures, especially when foods were energy dense, regardless of weight status (p < 0.001). The olfactory priming effect was only significant in the implicit condition. Participants with obesity had a stronger AB toward foods when they were primed with a non-attentively perceived high-energy dense food odor than with a non-attentively perceived low-energy dense food odor (p = 0.02). The trend was reversed for normal-weight participants, while no significant effect was found for participants with overweight.Conclusion: Our results support the hypothesis that an obesity-specific cognitive vulnerability may influence the processing of food-related stimuli and only while food cues are non-attentively perceived. Future research should seek to understand the mechanisms of this phenomenon.

Combined Longitudinal Effect of Physical Activity and Screen Time on Food and Beverage Consumption in European Preschool Children: The ToyBox-Study.

Lifestyle behavioral habits such as excess screen time (ST), a lack of physical activity (PA), and high energy-dense food consumption are associated with an increased risk of children being overweight or obese. This study aimed to (1) track longitudinal adherence to PA and ST recommendations at baseline (T0) and follow-up (T1) and (2) assess the association between changes in adherence to PA and ST recommendations and food and beverage consumption at follow-up. The present study included 2321 preschool children (3.5 to 6) participating in the multicenter ToyBox-study. A lineal mixed effects model was used to examine the association between different types of food and beverages and their relationship with changes in adherence to PA and ST recommendations. Approximately half of the children (50.4%) did not meet the PA and ST recommendations at both baseline and follow-up. However, only 0.6% of the sample met both PA and ST recommendations. Preschool children who met both recommendations consumed fewer fizzy drinks, juices, sweets, desserts, and salty snacks and consumed more water, fruits and vegetables, and dairy products than did those not meeting both recommendations. In conclusion, the proportion of European preschool children adhering to both PA and ST recommendations was very low and was associated with a low consumption of energy-dense foods.