Introduction & Objective: Maladaptive dietary behaviors contribute to poor glycemic outcomes for persons with type 2 diabetes (T2DM). Another factor that may contribute to poor T2DM dietary behaviors include food addiction (FA; overconsumption to the point there are similar symptoms to substance-related and addictive disorders). FA behaviors can be reflected by differences in brain tissue integrity, but the relationships between FA and brain tissue integrity in persons with T2DM are unclear. This study investigated the associations between FA and brain tissue integrity in persons with T2DM.
Methods: Twenty-one T2DM participants between the ages 40-65 years completed brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans and the Yale Food Addiction Scale 2.0 (YFAS). Using diffusion tensor imaging data, mean diffusivity (MD; a measure of brain integrity) values were calculated, and region-of-interest analyses were performed on various brain areas to examine correlations with YFAS 2.0 scores (partial correlations; covariates: age and sex).
Results: Significant correlations between tissue integrity and YFAS 2.0 scores were found in brain regions regulating executive decision-making (frontal cortices, precuneus, temporal); memory-visual or auditory (occipital, supramarginal); motor function (putamen); and emotion (cingulum) functions in T2DM patients.
Conclusions: Significant correlations appear between FA and brain tissue integrity in this population with T2DM and findings indicate that FA has a brain structural basis in persons with T2DM. Further studies are needed to understand the impact of FA on these altered brain tissue areas and to identify interventions to protect or promote neurogenesis and determine if such interventions improve T2DM outcomes.
J.T. Smeltzer: None. R. Kumar: None. T.W. Fong: None. M.A. Woo: None. S.E. Choi: None.
National Institutes of Health (1R01 NR017190-01)
