New Article Targets Food Addiction, Adolescent Obesity in Low- and Middle-Income Countries
Focusing on recent research into food addiction, a review article published in the Journal of Adolescent Health discusses “the need for multilevel interventions that go beyond simple behavioral approaches” in low- and middle-income counties (LMICs) with increasing adolescent obesity rates. Albert Lee and Susannah Gibbs, “Neurobiology of Food Addiction and Adolescent Obesity Prevention in Low- and Middle-Income Countries,” Journal of Adolescent Health, January 2013. The article argues that “advances in the understanding of neurobiology may provide important guidance in shaping how obesity is addressed in LMICs,” where changes in global food production have prompted many consumers to shift “from consuming meals prepared at home to consuming mass-produced processed foods that are high in sugar, salt, and artificial ingredients.”
Citing numerous studies that have investigated the neurobiology of food
addiction and its alleged similarities to substance abuse, the authors ultimately
credit the current body of literature with suggesting that “lifestyle- or
willpower-based models of prevention and intervention may not be effective,
particularly among adolescents, who may be at a higher risk than adults for
developing food addictions,” in part because they are more sensitive to sweets
and more likely to take risks than older consumers. To this end, the article
recommends several concrete interventions that target both the community
and the individual, such as “making unhealthy food a difficult choice” and
“withdrawing rewards on excess time spent on… sedentary lifestyles and
overconsumption of junk food.”
“Solutions to address obesity among adolescents in LMICs must approach this public health priority on a variety of levels from national policy to individual-level interventions and should take into account what is known about the neurobiology of food addiction,” write the authors. “Future research on adolescent obesity should be cross cutting, linking public health science and biomedical science with outcome measurements including neurobiological changes as well as behavioral and physiological changes.”
