Lemeshow AR, et al. - The association between food consumption and food addiction was evaluated in this study. The researchers found a positive association between food addiction and consumption of many hypothesized positively reinforcing foods that included a combination of carbohydrates and fats such as snacks, “fast foods,” and candy bars. On the other hand, it was inversely or not associated with certain sweet foods, refined grains, and sugar-sweetened beverages, which was consistent with literature suggesting that carbohydrates (without other ingredients) were less correlated with food addiction.

Methods

• Data was collected from the Nurses' Health Study (n = 58,625) and Nurses' Health Study II (n = 65,063), 2 prospective cohort studies of female nurses.
• This research was conducted in the United States.
• Using a food frequency questionnaire, diet was assessed in 2006-2007.
• The physicians evaluated food addiction in 2008-2009 using the Modified Yale Food Addiction Scale.

Results

• In this study, the prevalence of food addiction was found to be 5.4%.
• Strongest odds of food addiction were observed among nurses consuming 5+ servings/week (compared with <1 serving/month) of hamburgers (multivariable odds ratio (MVOR) 4.08; 95% CI, 2.66-6.25), French fries (MVOR, 2.37; 95% CI, 1.59-3.51) and pizza (MVOR, 2.49; 95% CI, 1.67-3.69).
• Factors positively associated with the food addiction were consumption of red/processed meat, low/no fat snacks/desserts, and low-calorie beverages.
• In contrast, consumption of refined grains, sugar-sweetened beverages and fruits, vegetables, and legumes was inversely correlated with food addiction.