Prefrontal cortex activation by binge-eating status in individuals with obesity while attempting to reappraise responses to food using functional near infrared spectroscopy

Purpose Difficulty reappraising drives to consume palatable foods may promote poorer inhibition and binge eating (BE) in adults with obesity, but neural underpinnings of food-related reappraisal are underexamined. Methods To examine neural correlates of food-related reappraisal, adults with obesity with and without BE wore a portable neuroimaging tool, functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). fNIRS measured activity in the prefrontal cortex while participants watched videos of food and attempt to “resist” the food stimuli (i.e., “consider the negative consequences of eating the food”). Results Participants (N = 32, 62.5% female; BMI 38.6 $$\pm$$ ± 7.1; 43.5 $$\pm$$ ± 13.4 y) had a BMI > 30 kg/m2. Eighteen adults (67.0% female; BMI 38.2 $$\pm$$ ± 7.6) reported BE (≥ 12 BE-episodes in preceding 3 months). The control group comprised 14 adults who denied BE (64.0% female; BMI 39.2 $$\pm$$ ± 6.6). Among the entire sample, mixed models showed significant, small hyperactivation during crave and resist compared to watch (relax) condition bilaterally in the medial superior frontal gyrus, dorsolateral areas, and middle frontal gyrus (optodes 5, 7, 9, 10, 11, and 12) in the total sample. No statistically significant differences in neural activation were observed between the BE and control group. Moreover, there were no significant group by condition interactions on neural activation. Conclusion Among adults with obesity, BE status was not linked to differential activation in inhibitory prefrontal cortex areas during a food-related reappraisal task. Future research is needed with larger samples, adults without obesity, and inhibition paradigms with both behavioral and cognitive components. Level of evidence Level III: Evidence obtained from well-designed cohort or case–control analytic studies. Trial registration: # NCT03113669, date April 13, 2017.