Consumer Psychology and eating behaviour

In recent years there has been an emerging body of research looking into the psychological mechanisms underlying food consumption and eventually modulating energy intake. This chapter reviews the empirical evidence demonstrating how everything from the label of a food and the properties of the container, through to the variety of the components of the food affect our perception of food, the portion estimation and its consumption. I also discuss the concepts and theories that explain these mechanisms, as well as the existing measurement methods

Video Game Therapy for Emotional Regulation and Impulsivity Control in a Series of Treated Cases with Bulimia Nervosa

Although standard psychological treatments have been successful in treating several core features in eating disorders (ED), other characteristics such as emotional regulation or impulsivity appear to be more resistant to change. There is a growing body of evidence to support the efficacy of cognitive remediation for cognitive and emotional difficulties in ED. Playmancer/ Islands is a video game (VG) designed to specifically treat mental disorders, characterized by problems in impulse control. The objective of the game is to increase self-control over emotions, decision making and behaviours. The aim of this study is to describe the results from a consecutive series of nine bulimia nervosa patients who were treated with the VG in addition to cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT). The outcomes included clinical and psychopathological questionnaires, and physiological measures were obtained during the VG. Emotional regulation improved, heart rate variability increased, and respiratory rate and impulsivity measures reduced after the treatment. These findings suggest that VG training may enhance treatment for ED. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association

Modulation of the endocannabinoids N-arachidonoylethanolamine (AEA) and 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) on executive functions in humans

Animal studies point to an implication of the endocannabinoid system on executive functions. In humans, several studies have suggested an association between acute or chronic use of exogenous cannabinoids (Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol) and executive impairments. However, to date, no published reports establish the relationship between endocannabinoids, as biomarkers of the cannabinoid neurotransmission system, and executive functioning in humans. The aim of the present study was to explore the association between circulating levels of plasma endocannabinoids N-arachidonoylethanolamine (AEA) and 2-Arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) and executive functions (decision making, response inhibition and cognitive flexibility) in healthy subjects. One hundred and fifty seven subjects were included and assessed with the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test; Stroop Color and Word Test; and Iowa Gambling Task. All participants were female, aged between 18 and 60 years and spoke Spanish as their first language. Results showed a negative correlation between 2-AG and cognitive flexibility performance (r = -.37; p<.05). A positive correlation was found between AEA concentrations and both cognitive flexibility (r = .59; p<.05) and decision making performance (r = .23; P<.05). There was no significant correlation between either 2-AG (r = -.17) or AEA (r = -.08) concentrations and inhibition response. These results show, in humans, a relevant modulation of the endocannabinoid system on prefrontal-dependent cognitive functioning. The present study might have significant implications for the underlying executive alterations described in some psychiatric disorders currently associated with endocannabinoids deregulation (namely drug abuse/dependence, depression, obesity and eating disorders). Understanding the neurobiology of their dysexecutive profile might certainly contribute to the development of new treatments and pharmacological approaches

Expected Satiety: Application to Weight Management and Understanding Energy Selection in Humans

Recent advances in the approaches used to quantify expectations of satiation and satiety have led to a better understanding of how humans select and consume food, and the associated links to energy intake regulation. When compared calorie for calorie some foods are expected to deliver several times more satiety than others, and multiple studies have demonstrated that people are able to discriminate between similar foods reliably and with considerable sensitivity. These findings have implications for the control of meal size and the design of foods that can be used to lower the energy density of diets. These methods and findings are discussed in terms of their implications for weight management. The current paper also highlights why expected satiety may also play an important role beyond energy selection, in moderating appetite sensations after a meal has been consumed, through memory for recent eating and the selection of foods across future meals

Multi-Criteria Reverse Engineering for Food: Genesis and Ongoing Advances

Multi-criteria reverse engineering (MRE) has arisen from the cross-fertilization of advances in mathematics and shifts in social demand. MRE, thus, marks a progressive switch (a) from empirical to formal approaches able to simultaneously factor in diverse parameters, such as environment, economics, and health; (b) from mono-criterion optimization to multi-criteria decision analysis; (c) from forward engineering, observing the results of process conditions, to reverse engineering, selecting the right process conditions for a target output. The food sector has been slow to adopt reverse engineering, but interest is surging now that the industry is looking to shift production towards personalized food. MRE has followed a heterogeneous development trajectory and found applications in different disciplines. The scope of this review spans MRE applications in the food sector covering food packaging and food consumption and focuses on demonstrating potentialities of MRE in a complex field like food. We explain how MRE enables thedevelopment of sustainable processes, looking at similar approaches used in sectors other than food. Building on this extensive review, we sketch out some guidelines on approaches to be used in future MRE applications in food, working up from the problem statement