Greater emotional eating scores associated with reduced frontolimbic activation to palatable taste in healthy adolescents

OBJECTIVE: This study examined the relation between self-reported emotional eating scores and frontolimbic brain response to palatable taste in adolescents. DESIGN AND METHODS: Participants included 162 adolescents (Mean BMI percentile = 52.7, range 3–90). Participants completed a selfreport survey assessing emotional eating and underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while viewing pictures signaling subsequent delivery of a chocolate milkshake or a control taste and receiving the corresponding taste. RESULTS: Results revealed no significant relation between emotional eating scores and brain response to anticipation of receipt of milkshake. In response to milkshake taste receipt, emotional eating scores were negatively related to activation in the right thalamus, the left insula and orbitofrontal cortex, and bilateral putamen and caudate. These findings remained significant after controlling for body mass index and body fat percentage. CONCLUSIONS: The current results are discussed in the context of findings of reduced reward activation to palatable taste receipt in obese adults and adolescents.