Obese children show hyperactivation to food pictures in brain networks linked to motivation, reward and cognitive control
Open accessAbstract
Objective To investigate the neural mechanisms of food motivation in children and adolescents, and examine brain activation differences between healthy weight (HW) and obese participants.Subjects Ten HW children (ages 11-16; BMI < 85%ile) and 10 obese children (ages 10-17; BMI >95%ile) matched for age, gender and years of education.Measurements Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans were conducted twice: when participants were hungry (pre-meal) and immediately after a standardized meal (post-meal). During the fMRI scans, the participants passively viewed blocked images of food, non-food (animals) and blurred baseline control.Results Both groups of children showed brain activation to food images in the limbic and paralimbic regions (PFC/OFC). The obese group showed significantly greater activation to food pictures in the PFC (pre-meal) and OFC (post-meal) than the HW group. In addition, the obese group showed less post-meal reduction of activation (vs pre-meal) in the PFC, limbic and the reward-processing regions, including the nucleus accumbens.Conclusion Limbic and paralimbic activation in high food motivation states was noted in both groups of participants. However, obese children were hyper-responsive to food stimuli as compared with HW children. In addition, unlike HW children, brain activations in response to food stimuli in obese children failed to diminish significantly after eating. This study provides initial evidence that obesity, even among children, is associated with abnormalities in neural networks involved in food motivation, and that the origins of neural circuitry dysfunction associated with obesity may begin early in life.
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The study focused on a specific dietary factor by controlling for calorie content, macronutrient composition, ingredient sources, and food form.
“Third, we focused on a spe-cific dietary factor by controlling for calorie content, macronutrient composition, ingredient sources, and food form, instead of comparing grossly different foods (eg, cheesecake compared with vegetables) (6,10,31,32).”
From Effects of dietary glycemic index on brain regions related to reward and craving in men (2013) · cites this paper as [6]
Recent studies using BOLD fMRI have shown selective overactivity in the nucleus accumbens and related brain areas in obese compared with lean individuals when shown images of highly palatable food.
“Recent studies that used the conventional blood oxygenation level-dependent fMRI have shown selective overactivity in the nucleus accumbens and related brain areas in obese compared with lean individuals when shown imagines of highly palatable food (6)(7)(8)(9)(10)(11)”
From Effects of dietary glycemic index on brain regions related to reward and craving in men (2013) · cites this paper as [6]
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- Authors
- Bruce, A. S., Holsen, L. M., Chambers, R. J., Martin, L. E., Brooks, W. M., Zarcone, J. R., Butler, M. G., & Savage, C. R.
- Affiliations
- University of Kansas Medical Center (US)
- Brigham and Women's Hospital (US)
- University of Rochester Medicine (US)
- University of Missouri–Kansas City (US)
- Corresponding author
- Savage, C R
- Venue
- International Journal of Obesity
- Published
- 2010-05-04
- Volume
- 34
- Issue
- 10
- Pages
- 1494-1500
- ISSN
- 0307-0565 (ISSN-L)
- 1476-5497
- PMC
- PMC6800141
- OpenAlex
- W2162064411
- Cited by
- 282
- References
- 40
- Citations by year
- 2026: 9 · 2025: 13 · 2024: 10 · 2023: 16 · 2022: 15 · 2021: 15 · 2020: 13 · 2019: 18 · 2018: 27 · 2017: 23 · 2016: 23 · 2015: 23 · 2014: 21 · 2013: 18 · 2012: 19
- FWCI
- 18.67
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- International Journal of Obesity (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- Hall Family Foundation
- National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (R01NS39123, R01NS039123)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Eating Disorders and Behaviors
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Regulation of Appetite and Obesity
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet
- Keywords
- childhood obesity, food motivation, food images, prefrontal cortex, orbitofrontal cortex, nucleus accumbens, reward processing, limbic system, hyperactivation, hunger
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Child, Feeding Behavior, Female, Food, Humans, Hunger, Limbic System, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Motivation, Obesity, Photic Stimulation, Postprandial Period
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