Duck Sarah Ann, Jansen Elena, Chen Liuyi, Hua Shuxian, Ahn Allison, Benson Leora, Papantoni Afroditi, Carnell Susan
Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
Sci Rep. 2025 Jul 18;15(1):26133. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-11410-2.
Food fussiness (picky eating) increases risk for poor nutrition and eating disorders but its biological underpinnings are not understood. We aimed to investigate behavioral (observed as well as parent- and self-reported), and neural (using functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)) correlates of food fussiness. Adolescents completed an fMRI task during which they viewed photos of fruits and vegetables [F&V], high energy-density [High-ED] foods, and Non-foods. Following scanning, they completed a multi-item ad libitum meal [ALM], then an Eating in the Absence of Hunger [EAH] test. Parents completed the Child Eating Behavior Questionnaire [CEBQ]. Adolescents reported habitual dietary intake using a 24-hour dietary recall (ASA24). Adolescents were categorized based on CEBQ Food Fussiness [FF] scores, such that scores ≥ 3 = high FF (n = 23), and scores ≤ 2 = low FF (n = 28). The high vs. low FF group reported lower wanting for F&V stimuli in the fMRI task and consumed lower absolute and relative intake of F&V at the ALM, while ASA24 data also demonstrated greater % total kcal intake from added sugar. Adolescents with high FF demonstrated activation that was consistent with decreased approach toward F&V and increased approach toward High-ED foods. Neuroimaging results demonstrated differential responses to F&V and high-ED stimuli among adolescents with high food fussiness, providing preliminary evidence for a neural signature of food fussiness.
食物挑剔（挑食）会增加营养不良和饮食失调的风险，但其生物学基础尚不清楚。我们旨在研究食物挑剔的行为（观察到的以及家长和自我报告的）和神经（使用功能磁共振成像（fMRI））相关性。青少年完成了一项fMRI任务，在此期间他们观看了水果和蔬菜[F&V]、高能量密度[High-ED]食物以及非食物的照片。扫描后，他们完成了一顿随意的多项目餐[ALM]，然后进行了非饥饿进食[EAH]测试。家长完成了儿童饮食行为问卷[CEBQ]。青少年使用24小时饮食回忆（ASA24）报告习惯性饮食摄入量。青少年根据CEBQ食物挑剔[FF]得分进行分类，得分≥3 =高FF（n = 23），得分≤2 =低FF（n = 28）。高FF组与低FF组相比，在fMRI任务中对F&V刺激的渴望较低，在ALM时F&V的绝对和相对摄入量较低，而ASA24数据也显示来自添加糖的总千卡摄入量百分比更高。高FF的青少年表现出的激活与对F&V的趋近减少和对High-ED食物的趋近增加一致。神经影像学结果表明，食物挑剔程度高的青少年对F&V和高ED刺激有不同反应，为食物挑剔的神经特征提供了初步证据。
