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Summary: Having a parent experiencing alcohol addiction increases a person’s risk of becoming addicted to highly processed foods, a new study reports.
Source: University of Michigan
People with a parent with a history of drinking problems are at higher risk of showing signs of addiction to highly processed foods, a new study from the University of Michigan has found.
These foods, like ice cream, chocolate, pizza, and fries, contain unnaturally high levels of refined carbohydrates and fats that can trigger an addictive response in some people.
UM researchers wanted to know if a major risk factor for addiction — having a parent with a drinking problem — predicts an increased risk of addiction to highly processed foods.
Up to 1 in 5 people appear to exhibit this clinically significant addiction to highly processed foods, characterized by a loss of control over intake, intense cravings, and an inability to reduce despite negative consequences.
“People with a family history of addiction may be at greater risk of developing a problematic relationship with highly processed foods, which is really challenging in a food environment where these foods are cheap, accessible and heavily marketed,” said Lindzey Hoover, UM Psychology PhD student and lead author of the study.
But addictive reactions didn’t end with food, as people with binge eating were also more likely to show personal problems with alcohol, cannabis, tobacco, and e-cigarettes, research showed.
Diets dominated by highly processed foods and excessive intake of addictive substances are the leading causes of preventable deaths in the modern world. This study suggests that interventions are needed to simultaneously reduce addictive eating and substance use.
“Public health approaches that have reduced the harm of other addictive substances, such as restricting marketing to children, may be important in reducing the adverse effects of highly processed foods,” Hoover said.
About this news from addiction research
Author: press office
Source: University of Michigan
Contact: Press Office – University of Michigan
Picture: The image is in the public domain
Original research: Closed access.
“The co-occurrence of parental histories of binge eating, obesity, problem substance use, and problem alcohol use” by Lindzey V. Hoover et al. Psychology of Addictive Behavior
See also
abstract
Concomitant parental history of binge eating, obesity, problem substance use, and problem alcohol use
Objective: The present study examines rates of co-occurrence of binge eating (FA), problem substance use (alcohol, cannabis, cigarettes, nicotine vaping), parental history of problem alcohol use, and obesity as an important step in understanding whether an addiction-like eating phenotype exists.
Method: A community sample of 357 US adults (49.7% male, 77.6% White, Mage 40.7) completed the Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0 (YFAS2.0), Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test, Cannabis Use Disorder Identification Test, Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Addiction, E-Cigarette Addiction Scale, Pedigree Questionnaire, and Demographics /Body Mass Index self-assessment questions via Amazon Mechanical Turk. Risk measures (RRs; unadjusted and adjusted for sociodemographic covariates) were calculated using modified Poisson regression.
Results: The risk of FA was higher in participants with problem alcohol use (RR = 2.13, 99% CI [1.32, 3.45]), smoking (RR = 1.86, 99% CI [0.82, 3.36]), cannabis use (unadjusted; RR = 2.22, 99% CI [1.17, 4.18]), vaping (RR = 2.71, 99% CI [1.75, 4.21]) and parental history of problem alcohol use (RR = 2.35, 99% CI [1.46, 3.79]). The risk of FA in participants with obesity was higher only in fitted models (RR = 1.87, 99% CI [1.06, 3.27]). Obesity was not significantly associated with parental problem substance use and problem alcohol use.
Conclusions: FA, but not obesity, co-occurred with problem substance use and a parental history of problem alcohol use. The results support the conceptualization of FA as an addictive disorder. The inclusion of FA as an addiction in diagnostic frameworks is an important area for future consideration.
