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Sonja Yokum

Other affiliations: University of Texas at Austin
Bio: Sonja Yokum is an academic researcher from Oregon Research Institute. The author has contributed to research in topics: Orbitofrontal cortex & Overeating. The author has an hindex of 28, co-authored 54 publications receiving 4306 citations. Previous affiliations of Sonja Yokum include University of Texas at Austin.


Papers
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Similar patterns of neural activation are implicated in addictive-like eating behavior and substance dependence: elevated activation in reward circuitry in response to food cues and reduced activation of inhibitory regions in responseto food intake.
Abstract: Context Research has implicated an addictive process in the development and maintenance of obesity. Although parallels in neural functioning between obesity and substance dependence have been found, to our knowledge, no studies have examined the neural correlates of addictive-like eating behavior. Objective To test the hypothesis that elevated“food addiction” scores are associated with similar patterns of neural activation as substance dependence. Design Between-subjects functional magnetic resonance imaging study. Setting A university neuroimaging center. Participants Forty-eight healthy young women ranging from lean to obese recruited for a healthy weight maintenance trial. Main Outcome Measure The relation between elevated food addiction scores and blood oxygen level–dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging activation in response to receipt and anticipated receipt of palatable food (chocolate milkshake). Results Food addiction scores (N = 39) correlated with greater activation in the anterior cingulate cortex, medial orbitofrontal cortex, and amygdala in response to anticipated receipt of food (P Conclusions Similar patterns of neural activation are implicated in addictive-like eating behavior and substance dependence: elevated activation in reward circuitry in response to food cues and reduced activation of inhibitory regions in response to food intake.

572 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Functional magnetic resonance imaging is used to investigate neural activations during a food-specific go/no-go task in adolescent girls ranging from lean to obese and suggests that hypofunctioning of inhibitory control regions and increased response of food reward regions are related to elevated weight.

469 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
01 Sep 2011-Obesity
TL;DR: Results indicate that overweight is related to greater attentional bias to food cues and that youth who show elevated reward circuitry responsivity during food cue exposure are at increased risk for weight gain.
Abstract: Behavioral studies reveal that obese vs. lean individuals show attentional bias to food stimuli. Yet research has not investigated this relation using objective brain imaging or tested whether attentional bias to food stimuli predicts future weight gain, which are important aims given the prominence of food cues in the environment. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to examine attentional bias in 35 adolescent girls ranging from lean to obese using an attention network task involving food and neutral stimuli. BMI correlated positively with speed of behavioral response to both appetizing food stimuli and unappetizing food stimuli, but not to neutral stimuli. BMI correlated positively with activation in brain regions related to attention and food reward, including the anterior insula/frontal operculum, lateral orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (vlPFC), and superior parietal lobe, during initial orientation to food cues. BMI also correlated with greater activation in the anterior insula/frontal operculum during reallocation of attention to appetizing food images and with weaker activation in the medial OFC and ventral pallidum during reallocation of attention to unappetizing food images. Greater lateral OFC activation during initial orientation to appetizing food cues predicted future increases in BMI. Results indicate that overweight is related to greater attentional bias to food cues and that youth who show elevated reward circuitry responsivity during food cue exposure are at increased risk for weight gain.

367 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Testing whether overeating leads to reduced striatal responsivity to palatable food intake in humans using repeated-measures functional magnetic resonance imaging indicated that women who gained weight over a 6 month period showed a reduction in striatal response toPalatable food consumption relative to weight-stable women.
Abstract: Consistent with the theory that individuals with hypofunctioning reward circuitry overeat to compensate for a reward deficit, obese versus lean humans have fewer striatal D2 receptors and show less striatal response to palatable food intake. Low striatal response to food intake predicts future weight gain in those at genetic risk for reduced signaling of dopamine-based reward circuitry. Yet animal studies indicate that intake of palatable food results in downregulation of D2 receptors, reduced D2 sensitivity, and decreased reward sensitivity, implying that overeating may contribute to reduced striatal responsivity. Thus, we tested whether overeating leads to reduced striatal responsivity to palatable food intake in humans using repeated-measures functional magnetic resonance imaging. Results indicated that women who gained weight over a 6 month period showed a reduction in striatal response to palatable food consumption relative to weight-stable women. Collectively, results suggest that low sensitivity of reward circuitry increases risk for overeating and that this overeating may further attenuate responsivity of reward circuitry in a feedforward process.

355 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This novel prospective fMRI study indicates that responsivity of reward circuitry to food increases risk for future weight gain, but that genes that impact dopamine signaling capacity moderate the predictive effects, suggesting two qualitatively distinct pathways to unhealthy weight gain based on genetic risk.

311 citations


Cited by
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: It is concluded that multiple Imputation for Nonresponse in Surveys should be considered as a legitimate method for answering the question of why people do not respond to survey questions.
Abstract: 25. Multiple Imputation for Nonresponse in Surveys. By D. B. Rubin. ISBN 0 471 08705 X. Wiley, Chichester, 1987. 258 pp. £30.25.

3,216 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The effectiveness of a range of interventions that include diet or physical activity components, or both, designed to prevent obesity in children is evaluated to determine overall certainty of the evidence.
Abstract: The current evidence suggests that many diet and exercise interventions to prevent obesity in children are not effective in preventing weight gain, but can be effective in promoting a healthy diet and increased physical activity levels.Being very overweight (obese) can cause health, psychological and social problems for children. Children who are obese are more likely to have weight and health problems as adults. Programmes designed to prevent obesity focus on modifying one or more of the factors considered to promote obesity.This review included 22 studies that tested a variety of intervention programmes, which involved increased physical activity and dietary changes, singly or in combination. Participants were under 18 and living in Asia, South America, Europe or North America. There is not enough evidence from trials to prove that any one particular programme can prevent obesity in children, although comprehensive strategies to address dietary and physical activity change, together with psycho-social support and environmental change may help. There was a trend for newer interventions to involve their respective communities and to include evaluations.Future research might usefully assess changes made on behalf of entire populations, such as improvements in the types of foods available at schools and in the availability of safe places to run and play, and should assess health effects and costs over several years.The programmes in this review used different strategies to prevent obesity so direct comparisons were difficult. Also, the duration of the studies ranged from 12 weeks to three years, but most lasted less than a year.

2,464 citations

01 Jan 2016
TL;DR: This application applied longitudinal data analysis modeling change and event occurrence will help people to enjoy a good book with a cup of coffee in the afternoon instead of facing with some infectious virus inside their computer.
Abstract: Thank you very much for downloading applied longitudinal data analysis modeling change and event occurrence. As you may know, people have look hundreds times for their favorite novels like this applied longitudinal data analysis modeling change and event occurrence, but end up in malicious downloads. Rather than enjoying a good book with a cup of coffee in the afternoon, instead they are facing with some infectious virus inside their computer.

2,102 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Functional neuroimaging studies conducted in the past decade that have expanded the understanding of the involvement of the PFC in drug addiction are focused on.
Abstract: The loss of control over drug intake that occurs in addiction was initially believed to result from disruption of subcortical reward circuits. However, imaging studies in addictive behaviours have identified a key involvement of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) both through its regulation of limbic reward regions and its involvement in higher-order executive function (for example, self-control, salience attribution and awareness). This Review focuses on functional neuroimaging studies conducted in the past decade that have expanded our understanding of the involvement of the PFC in drug addiction. Disruption of the PFC in addiction underlies not only compulsive drug taking but also accounts for the disadvantageous behaviours that are associated with addiction and the erosion of free will.

2,008 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
01 Apr 2009-Appetite
TL;DR: The Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS) is a sound tool for identifying eating patterns that are similar to behaviors seen in classic areas of addiction, and predicted binge-eating behavior above and beyond existing measures of eating pathology, demonstrating incremental validity.

1,049 citations