Is brain response to food rewards related to overeating? A test of the reward surfeit model of overeating in children
- PMID:29890186
- PMCID: PMC7482544
- DOI: 10.1016/j.appet.2018.06.014
Is brain response to food rewards related to overeating? A test of the reward surfeit model of overeating in children
Abstract
The reward surfeit model of overeating suggests that heightened brain response to rewards contributes to overeating and subsequent weight gain. However, previous studies have not tested whether brain response to reward is associated with food intake, particularly during childhood, a period of dynamic development in reward and inhibitory control neurocircuitry. We conducted functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) with 7-11-year-old children (n = 59; healthy weight, n = 31; overweight, n = 28; 54% female) while they played a modified card-guessing paradigm to examine blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) response to anticipating and winning rewards (food, money, neutral). Food intake was assessed at three separate meals that measured different facets of eating behavior: 1) typical consumption (baseline), 2) overindulgence (palatable buffet), and 3) eating in the absence of hunger (EAH). A priori regions of interest included regions implicated in both reward processing and inhibitory control. Multiple stepwise regressions were conducted to examine the relationship between intake and BOLD response to rewards. Corrected results showed that a greater BOLD response in the medial prefrontal cortex for anticipating food compared to money positively correlated with how much children ate at the baseline and palatable buffet meals. BOLD response in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex for winning food compared to money was positively correlated with intake at the palatable buffet meal and EAH. All aforementioned relationships were independent of child weight status. Findings support the reward surfeit model by showing that increased brain response to food compared to money rewards positively correlates with laboratory measures of food intake in children.
Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.govNCT02855398.
Keywords: Childhood obesity; Eating behavior; Inhibitory control; Reward processing; fMRI.
Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Conflict of interest statement
No authors report any conflicts of interest.
Figures




Similar articles
- Food or money? Children's brains respond differently to rewards regardless of weight status.Adise S, Geier CF, Roberts NJ, White CN, Keller KL.Adise S, et al.Pediatr Obes. 2019 Feb;14(2):e12469. doi: 10.1111/ijpo.12469. Epub 2018 Sep 21.Pediatr Obes. 2019.PMID:30239165
- Children's inhibitory control abilities in the presence of rewards are related to weight status and eating in the absence of hunger.Adise S, White CN, Roberts NJ, Geier CF, Keller KL.Adise S, et al.Appetite. 2021 Dec 1;167:105610. doi: 10.1016/j.appet.2021.105610. Epub 2021 Jul 26.Appetite. 2021.PMID:34324909
- Elevated energy intake is correlated with hyperresponsivity in attentional, gustatory, and reward brain regions while anticipating palatable food receipt.Burger KS, Stice E.Burger KS, et al.Am J Clin Nutr. 2013 Jun;97(6):1188-94. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.112.055285. Epub 2013 Apr 17.Am J Clin Nutr. 2013.PMID:23595877Free PMC article.
- Food for Thought: Reward Mechanisms and Hedonic Overeating in Obesity.Lee PC, Dixon JB.Lee PC, et al.Curr Obes Rep. 2017 Dec;6(4):353-361. doi: 10.1007/s13679-017-0280-9.Curr Obes Rep. 2017.PMID:29052153Review.
- Uncontrolled eating: a unifying heritable trait linked with obesity, overeating, personality and the brain.Vainik U, García-García I, Dagher A.Vainik U, et al.Eur J Neurosci. 2019 Aug;50(3):2430-2445. doi: 10.1111/ejn.14352. Epub 2019 Feb 25.Eur J Neurosci. 2019.PMID:30667547Review.
Cited by
- Switching between foods: A potential behavioral phenotype of hedonic hunger and increased obesity risk in children.Neuwald NV, Pearce AL, Adise S, Rolls BJ, Keller KL.Neuwald NV, et al.Physiol Behav. 2023 Oct 15;270:114312. doi: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2023.114312. Epub 2023 Aug 4.Physiol Behav. 2023.PMID:37543104Free PMC article.
- Smaller Subcortical Volume in Reward Processing Regions Precedes Weight Gain in Youth With High Financial Adversity: Findings From the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study.Adise S, Machle CJ, Myers KP, Ottino-González J, Millstein J, Goran MI, Sowell ER.Adise S, et al.J Adolesc Health. 2025 Jul;77(1):134-143. doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2025.03.019. Epub 2025 Jun 2.J Adolesc Health. 2025.PMID:40459483
- Neonatal amygdala microstructure mediates the relationship between gestational glycemia and offspring adiposity.Cai S, Aris IM, Yuan WL, Tan KH, Godfrey KM, Gluckman PD, Shek LP, Chong YS, Yap F, Fortier MV, Meaney MJ, Lee YS, Qiu A.Cai S, et al.BMJ Open Diabetes Res Care. 2021 Apr;9(1):e001396. doi: 10.1136/bmjdrc-2020-001396.BMJ Open Diabetes Res Care. 2021.PMID:33888539Free PMC article.
- Individual differences in the influence of taste and health impact successful dietary self-control: A mouse tracking food choice study in children.Pearce AL, Adise S, Roberts NJ, White C, Geier CF, Keller KL.Pearce AL, et al.Physiol Behav. 2020 Sep 1;223:112990. doi: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2020.112990. Epub 2020 Jun 4.Physiol Behav. 2020.PMID:32505786Free PMC article.
- Smaller subcortical volume relates to greater weight gain in girls with initially healthy weight.Adise S, Ottino-Gonzalez J, Hayati Rezvan P, Kan E, Rhee KE, Goran MI, Sowell ER.Adise S, et al.Obesity (Silver Spring). 2024 Jul;32(7):1389-1400. doi: 10.1002/oby.24028. Epub 2024 May 6.Obesity (Silver Spring). 2024.PMID:38710591Free PMC article.
References
- Adise S, Geier CF, Roberts NR, White CN, Keller KL. Food or money? Children’s brains respond differently to rewards regardless of weight status. Pediatric Obesity. 2018 Under Review. - PubMed
Publication types
MeSH terms
Associated data
Related information
Grants and funding
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Other Literature Sources
Medical
Research Materials