Affect modulates appetite-related brain activity to images of food.

OBJECTIVE We examined whether affect ratings predicted regional cerebral responses to high and low-calorie foods. METHOD Thirteen normal-weight adult women viewed photographs of high and low-calorie foods while undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Regression analysis was used to predict regional activation from positive and negative affect scores. RESULTS Positive and negative affect had different effects on several important appetite-related regions depending on the calorie content of the food images. When viewing high-calorie foods, positive affect was associated with increased activity in satiety-related regions of the lateral orbitofrontal cortex, but when viewing low-calorie foods, positive affect was associated with increased activity in hunger-related regions including the medial orbitofrontal and insular cortex. The opposite pattern of activity was observed for negative affect. CONCLUSION These findings suggest a neurobiologic substrate that may be involved in the commonly reported increase in cravings for calorie-dense foods during heightened negative emotions.