Background
Obesity is a modern health epidemic, with the overconsumption of highly palatable,
calorically dense foods as a likely contributor. Despite the known consequences of
obesity, behavioral noncompliance remains high, supporting the powerful rewarding
properties of such foods. We hypothesized that exposure to preferred diets would result
in an amelioration of stress responsivity via activation of reward pathways that would
be reversed during dietary withdrawal, increasing the risk for relapse and treatment
failure.
Methods
Mice were exposed to preferred diets high in fat or carbohydrates for 4 weeks and
then were withdrawn to house chow. Behavioral, physiologic, and biochemical assays
were performed to examine changes in stress and reward pathways.
Results
These studies revealed significant changes in arousal and anxiety-like behaviors,
limbic corticotropin-releasing factor expression, and expression of reward-related
signaling molecules in response to the highly preferred high-fat diet that was reversed
by withdrawal. In a dietary-reinstatement model, mice withdrawn from the high-fat
diet endured an aversive environment to gain access to the preferred food.
Conclusions
Exposure to a highly preferred diet high in fat reduces stress sensitivity, whereas
acute withdrawal from such a diet elevates the stress state and reduces reward, contributing
to the drive for dietary relapse.
Key Words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: January 08, 2007
Accepted:
September 19,
2006
Received in revised form:
September 19,
2006
Received:
March 3,
2006
Identification
Copyright
© 2007 Society of Biological Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
