Individual Differences in Children's Susceptibility to Overeating
Condition: Obesity
MeSH terms: Hyperphagia
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      The portion size of foods has been identified as an important determinant of energy intake in
      children. It remains to be determined to what extent child weight status and the relative
      reinforcing value of food may interact with the obesogenic food environment to affect energy
      intake. The primary aim of this study was to compare energy intake at a meal in normal-weight
      and obese children when the portion size of palatable, energy-dense foods and a
      sugar-sweetened beverage was systematically increased. We hypothesized that increasing the
      portion size of all foods and the beverage at a meal will lead to a significant increase in
      energy intake in both normal-weight and obese children. Obese children, however, will show a
      significantly greater increase in energy intake than will normal-weight children. A second
      aim of this study was to test if children's response to increases in portion size was
      affected by how reinforcing they find food to be. We hypothesized that, when controlling for
      BMI, children who find food very reinforcing relative to nonfood alternatives will show a
      significantly greater increase in energy intake than will children who find food less
      reinforcing.
    

Detailed description: 
      The prevalence of childhood and adolescent obesity has reached an all-time high. There is a
      pressing need to better understand the behavioral mechanisms that control appetite and eating
      in children and to identify children who are most susceptible to overeating in the current
      obesogenic food environment. Obesogenic environments offer convenient access to large
      portions of palatable, energy-dense foods. The portion size of foods has been identified as
      an important determinant of energy intake in adults and children. While portion size effects
      have been found in heterogenous groups of healthy individuals, some evidence points to
      possible individual differences in the magnitude of children's responsiveness to large food
      portions. For example, data from a previous laboratory study suggest that overweight and
      obese children may be particularly vulnerable to overeating when presented with large food
      portions. Further, the magnitude of a portion size effect on intake may also depend on how
      reinforcing (or rewarding) children find food to be. It is possible that the relative
      reinforcing value of food may interact with environmental cues, such as the portion size of
      food, to affect children's energy intake when large portions of palatable, energy-dense foods
      are available. The primary aim of this study is to compare the effects of increasing the
      portion size of all foods and a beverage served at a meal on energy intake in normal-weight
      and obese children. A second aim is to test if children who find food very reinforcing
      relative to an appealing nonfood alternative will show a significantly greater increase in
      energy intake in response to increasing portion sizes than will children who find food less
      reinforcing. The findings from this study are expected to extend previous findings to test
      how environmental factors, such as food portion size, may interact with individual
      differences in weight status or food reinforcement to affect energy intake in children.
    

Intervention name(s): Feeding Study
Intervention type(s): Other
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention model: Crossover Assignment
Masking: Single (Participant)
Primary purpose: Prevention