Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Original Article
  • Published:

‘I just can’t help myself’: effects of food-cue exposure in overweight and lean individuals

International Journal of Obesity volume 35, pages 142–149 (2011)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Objective:

Even brief exposure to the sight and smell of food has been shown to increase reported appetite, initiate ‘cephalic phase responses,’ and increase planned and actual consumption. This experiment tested the hypothesis that overweight individuals are especially sensitive to these established effects of food-cue exposure.

Design:

Overweight (n=52) and normal-weight (n=52) participants were exposed to the sight and smell of a ‘cued’ food (pizza) for 60 s. Before and after this period, we assessed salivation, prospective (planned) portion size, and desire to eat pizza and other ‘non-cued’ foods. Participants were then offered ad libitum access to pizza.

Results:

Consistent with previous studies, food-cue exposure increased rated hunger and desire to eat, increased prospective portion size of all savory foods, and increased salivation. In overweight individuals, cue exposure (i) elicited a significantly greater salivary response and, (ii) evoked a significantly greater increase in desire to eat both the cued food and another non-cued food.

Conclusion:

After cue exposure, overweight individuals experience a greater motivation to consume food but do not desire or consume greater amounts of food. These findings are consistent with evidence that snacking and meal variability predict weight gain and they expose ‘cue reactiveness’ as a potential predisposing factor for overweight.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1
Figure 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Schachter S . Obesity and eating. Science 1968; 161: 751–756.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Schachter S, Rodin J . Obese Humans and Rats. John Wiley & Sons Inc.: New York, NY, 1974.

    Google Scholar 

  3. Schachter S . Some extraordinary facts about obese humans and rats. Am Psychol 1971; 26: 129–144.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Schachter S, Gross LP . Manipulated time and eating behavior. J Pers Soc Psychol 1968; 10: 98–106.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Kozlowski LT, Schachter S . Effects of cue prominence and palatability on the drinking behavior of obese and normal humans. J Pers Soc Psychol 1975; 32: 1055–1059.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Fedoroff IC, Polivy J, Herman CP . The effect of pre-exposure to food cues on the eating behavior of restrained and unrestrained eaters. Appetite 1997; 28: 33–47.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Ferriday D, Brunstrom JM . How does food-cue exposure lead to larger meal sizes? Br J Nutr 2008; 100: 1325–1332.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Fedoroff I, Polivy J, Herman CP . The specificity of restrained versus unrestrained eaters’ responses to food cues: general desire to eat, or craving for the cued food? Appetite 2003; 41: 7–13.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Jansen A, Theunissen N, Slechten K, Nederkoorn C, Boon B, Mulkens S et al. Overweight children overeat after exposure to food cues. Eat Behav 2003; 4: 197–209.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Oakes ME, Slotterback CS . Self-reported measures of appetite in relation to verbal cues about many foods. Curr Psychol 2000; 19: 137–142.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Nederkoorn C, Smulders FTY, Jansen A . Cephalic phase responses, craving and food intake in normal subjects. Appetite 2000; 35: 45–55.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Nederkoorn C, Smulders F, Havermans R, Jansen A . Exposure to bingefood in bulimia nervosa: finger pulse amplitude as a potential measure of urge to eat and predictor of food intake. Appetite 2004; 42: 125–130.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Overduin J, Jansen A, Eilkes H . Cue reactivity to food- and body-related stimuli in restrained and unrestrained eaters. Addict Behav 1997; 22: 395–404.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Nirenberg TD, Miller PM . Salivation: an assessment of food craving? Behav Res Ther 1982; 20: 405–407.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Carter FA, Bulik CM, McIntosh VV, Joyce PR . Cue reactivity as a predictor of outcome with bulimia nervosa. Int J Eat Disorder 2002; 31: 240–250.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Karhunen LJ, Lappalainen RI, Tammela L, Turpeinen AK, Uusitupa MIJ . Subjective and physiological cephalic phase responses to food in obese binge-eating women. Int J Eat Disorder 1997; 21: 321–328.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Sobik L, Hutchison K, Craighead L . Cue-elicited craving for food: a fresh approach to the study of binge eating. Appetite 2005; 44: 253–261.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Bulik CM, Sullivan PF, Lawson RH, Carter FA . Salivary reactivity in women with bulimia nervosa across treatment. Biol Psychiat 1996; 39: 1009–1012.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Staiger P, Dawe S, McCarthy R . Responsivity to food cues in bulimic women and controls. Appetite 2000; 35: 27–33.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Epstein LH, Robinson JL, Temple JL, Roemmich JN, Marusewski A, Nadbrzuch R . Sensitization and habituation of motivated behavior in overweight and non-overweight children. Learn Motiv 2008; 39: 243–255.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Temple JL, Giacomelli AM, Roemmich JN, Epstein LH . Overweight children habituate slower than non-overweight children to food. Physiol Behav 2007; 91: 250–254.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. Johnson WG, Wildman HE . Influence of external and covert food stimuli on insulin secretion in obese and normal persons. Behav Neurosci 1983; 97: 1025–1028.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Wooley OW, Wooley SC, Woods WA . Effect of calories on appetite for palatable food in obese and nonobese humans. J Comp Physiol Psych 1975; 89: 619–625.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Guy-Grand B, Goga H . Conditioned salivation in obese subjects with different weight kinetics. Appetite 1981; 2: 351–355.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Epstein LH, Paluch R, Coleman KJ . Differences in salivation to repeated food cues in obese and nonobese women. Psychosom Med 1996; 58: 160–164.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Klajner F, Herman CP, Polivy J, Chhabra R . Human obesity, dieting, and anticipatory salivation to food. Physiol Behav 1981; 27: 195–198.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Legoff DB, Spigelman MN . Salivary response to olfactory food stimuli as a function of dietary restraint and body weight. Appetite 1987; 8: 29–35.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Brunstrom JM, Yates HM, Witcomb GL . Dietary restraint and heightened reactivity to food. Physiol Behav 2004; 81: 85–90.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Tepper BJ . Dietary restraint and responsiveness to sensory-based food cues as measured by cephalic phase salivation and sensory specific satiety. Physiol Behav 1992; 52: 305–311.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  30. Herman CP, Polivy J, Klajner F, Esses VM . Salivation in dieters and non-dieters. Appetite 1981; 2: 356–361.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Braet C, Wydhooge K . Dietary restraint in normal weight and overweight children. A cross-sectional study. Int J Obes 2000; 24: 314–318.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  32. Braet C, Van Strien T . Assessment of emotional, externally induced and restrained eating behaviour in nine to twelve-year-old obese and non-obese children. Behav Res Ther 1997; 35: 863–873.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. Klesges RC, Isbell TR, Klesges LM . Relationship between dietary restraint, energy-intake, physical-activity, and body-weight—a prospective analysis. J Abnorm Psychol 1992; 101: 668–674.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  34. Tetley A, Brunstrom JM, Griffiths P . Individual differences in food-cue reactivity. The role of BMI and everyday portion-size selections. Appetite 2009; 52: 614–620.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Herman CP, Polivy J . Restrained eating. In: Stunkard AJ (ed). Obesity. Saunders: Philadelphia, USA, 1980. pp 208–225.

    Google Scholar 

  36. Van Strien T, Frijters JER, Vanstaveren WA, Defares PB, Deurenberg P . The predictive-validity of the Dutch restrained eating scale. Int J Eat Disorder 1986; 5: 747–755.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Heatherton TF, Herman CP, Polivy J, King GA, McGree ST . The (mis)measurement of restraint—an analysis of conceptual and psychometric issues. J Abnorm Psychol 1988; 97: 19–28.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  38. Peck RE . The SHP test—an aid in the detection and measurement of depression. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1959; 1: 35–40.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  39. Brunstrom JM, Macrae AW, Roberts B . Mouth-state dependent changes in the judged pleasantness of water at different temperatures. Physiol Behav 1997; 61: 667–669.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  40. Gregory J . The Dietary and Nutritional Survey of British Adults: a Survey of the Dietary Behaviour, Nutritional Status and Blood Pressure of Adults Aged 16–64 Living in Great Britain: Commissioned Jointly by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and the Department of Health, vol. xv. HMSO: London, UK, 1990.

    Google Scholar 

  41. Watson D, Clark LA, Tellegen A . Development and validation of brief measures of positive and negative affect—the PANAS scales. J Pers Soc Psychol 1988; 54: 1063–1070.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  42. Gorman BS, Allison DB . Measures of restrained eating. In: Allison DB (ed). Measures of Restrained Eating. Handbook of Assessment Methods for Eating Behaviors and Weight-Related Problems: Measures, Theory, and Research. Sage Publications: Thousand Oaks, CA, USA, 1995. pp 149–184.

    Google Scholar 

  43. Mattes RD . Food palatability, rheology, and meal patterning. J Parenter Enteral Nutr 2008; 32: 572–574.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  44. Keski-Rahkonen A, Bulik CM, Pietilainen KH, Rose RJ, Kaprio J, Rissanen A . Eating styles, overweight and obesity in young adult twins. Eur J Clin Nutr 2007; 61: 822–829.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  45. Hays NP, Roberts SB . Aspects of eating behaviors ‘disinhibition’ and ‘restraint’ are related to weight gain and BMI in women. Obesity 2008; 16: 52–58.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  46. Tucker L, Peterson T . Variation in energy intake across 7 consecutive days and body fat percentage in 276 middle-age women. Obes Res 2000; 8: 86S.

    Google Scholar 

  47. Brunstrom JM, Rogers PJ, Pothos EM, Calitri R, Tapper K . Estimating everyday portion size using a ‘method of constant stimuli’: in a student sample, portion size is predicted by gender, dietary behaviour and hunger, but not BMI. Appetite 2008; 51: 296–301.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  48. Herman CP, Ostovich JM, Polivy J . Effects of attentional focus on subjective hunger ratings. Appetite 1999; 33: 181–193.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  49. Wansink B, Payne CR, Chandon P . Internal and external cues of meal cessation: the French paradox redux? Obesity 2007; 15: 2920–2924.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  50. Burton P, Smit HJ, Lightowler HJ . The influence of restrained and external eating patterns on overeating. Appetite 2007; 49: 191–197.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  51. Rodin J, Slochower J . Externality in nonobese—effects of environmental responsiveness on weight. J Pers Soc Psychol 1976; 33: 338–344.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  52. Wardle J, Carnell S, Haworth MA, Plomin R . Evidence for a strong genetic influence on childhood adiposity despite the force of the obesogenic environment. Am J Clin Nutr 2008; 87: 398–404.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  53. Carnell S, Wardle J . Appetite and adiposity in children: evidence for a behavioral susceptibility theory of obesity. Am J Clin Nutr 2008; 88: 22–29.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  54. Speakman JR . Thrifty genes for obesity, an attractive but flawed idea, and an alternative perspective: the ‘drifty gene’ hypothesis. Int J Obesity 2008; 32: 1611–1617.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  55. Laessle RG, Uhl H, Lindel B . Parental influences on eating behavior in obese and nonobese preadolescents. Int J Eat Disorder 2001; 30: 447–453.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This research was supported by a grant from the Economic and Social Research Council (RES-000-22-1745) on individual differences and food-cue reactivity, awarded to JMB.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Bristol, England, UK

    D Ferriday & J M Brunstrom

Authors
  1. D Ferriday
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. J M Brunstrom
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to D Ferriday.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Ferriday, D., Brunstrom, J. ‘I just can’t help myself’: effects of food-cue exposure in overweight and lean individuals. Int J Obes 35, 142–149 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2010.117

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ijo.2010.117

Keywords

This article is cited by

Search

Advanced search

Quick links