Interoception is the nervous system's integration of internal bodily signals, including gastrointestinal inputs. This process is crucial for regulating homeostasis, cognition, and emotion and depends on bidirectional brain-body communication. Given recent evidence of brain-stomach synchronization, determining whether emotional images (e.g., appetizing and disgusting) alter gastric activity is important for characterizing gut-brain interactions. Using an electrogastrogram (EGG), we recorded the gastric myoelectric activity (i.e., stomach's intrinsic rhythmicity) of 46 subjects (mostly undergraduate students, 37 females), while viewing three randomized blocks of appetizing, disgusting, or neutral images (70 per block, totaling 13 min), between 2024 and 2025. Participants then rated the appetite/disgust elicited by each image, completed a recall test, and answered psychological and interoception questionnaires. Linear mixed-effects models revealed significantly lower EGG power in the normogastric range (i.e., signal centered around 0.05 Hz) for disgusting compared to appetizing images. Additionally, a significantly higher proportion of normogastric power (i.e., normogastric activity) was found in the appetizing compared to the neutral condition. These differences were not accounted for by body mass index, hours since last meal, hunger level, interoception/psychological questionnaire measures, or recall performance. These findings provide evidence that gastric activity can be modulated in a top-down manner, possibly reflecting a preparatory physiological response. The reduced EGG power in the disgusting condition may be interpreted as preparation for rejection of food, whereas the increased normogastric activity in the appetizing condition may be interpreted as preparation for digestion. Our study provides a methodological foundation for assessing this manipulation's effect on gut-brain synchronization using simultaneous EGG and neural recordings. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).

Food rejection is most likely to occur during early childhood, with most rejected foods being vegetables and fruits. Consequently, many young children do not meet the recommended intake levels of these foods. Confirmation bias may be a cognitive factor contributing to low intake of novel vegetables and fruits. This study aimed to examine confirmation bias at two stages-information seeking and information evaluation-regarding novel foods in young children and investigate the differences in the strength of these confirmation biases based on the levels of everyday food rejection. Experiment 1 identified novel foods perceived as appetizing or unappetizing. Using these stimuli, Experiment 2 (N = 34) examined confirmation bias during the information search stage, whereas Experiment 3 (N = 34) examined it during the information evaluation stage. The results showed that, for appetizing novel foods, children sought more positive than negative information (Experiment 2) and evaluated positive information as more credible (Experiment 3). However, for unappetizing novel foods, children sought more negative than positive information (Experiment 2) and evaluated negative information as more reliable (Experiment 3). Thus, children demonstrated confirmation bias at both the information-seeking and information-evaluation stages concerning novel foods. Furthermore, in Experiment 3, children with higher levels of food rejection showed lower trust in positive information relative to negative information when evaluating unappetizing foods. These findings deepen our understanding of the cognitive mechanisms underlying food rejection and may inform the development of more effective, child-centered interventions to promote healthy eating in early childhood.

Experiencing loss of control (LOC) while eating is distressing to men and associated with many negative outcomes. Yet, investigations of LOC eating have focused on women. Some data suggest the factors that contribute to the onset and maintenance of these behaviors differ for men. The current study explored whether specific stressors, body dissatisfaction, dieting, hunger, food cravings, and food exposure were associated with same- and next-day LOC eating in young men. Participants included 41 men (18-35y; Mage = 25.4 ± 5.4) who reported engaging in 4 ≥ LOC eating episodes in the prior month. They completed a 14-day ecological momentary assessment protocol. The following predicted higher odds of same-day LOC eating: seeing/smelling appetizing foods; seeing other people eat/prepare appetizing foods; hearing other people talk about appetizing foods; ease of access to appetizing food; and problems with family members and money (odds ratios ≥1.43, ps ≤ 0.0382). The following predicted next-day LOC eating: craving one or more foods; seeing other people eat/prepare appetizing foods; hearing other people talk about appetizing foods; and problems with family members and physical pain (odds ratios ≥1.54, ps ≤ 0.0430). Problems with school/work, friends, and romantic relationships, dieting, hunger, and body dissatisfaction were not significantly associated with same- or next-day LOC eating. After applying a Benjamini-Hochberg correction, only seeing other people eat/prepare appetizing foods was associated with higher odds of same-day LOC eating (p corrected = 0.0136); all next-day associations were non-significant. Data suggest that exposure to appetizing foods in various forms may be the experience most closely related to young men's risk for LOC eating.

Food reappraisal is a cognitive strategy used to regulate the desire to eat by changing how one thinks about food. While prior research has demonstrated that food reappraisal can modulate food cravings, it remains unclear whether these effects generalize to untrained food stimuli and broader motivational states such as hunger. Additionally, the relative effectiveness of commonly used reappraisal strategies is not well understood. To address these gaps, the current study examined transfer effects of a single session of food reappraisal training aimed at either downregulating or upregulating the desire to eat. Healthy participants (N = 72) were randomly assigned to downregulation (n = 38) or upregulation (n = 34) conditions and applied different reappraisal strategies to their most craved foods. Strategies involved altering food perception, using interoceptive imagery, and focusing on the negative and positive consequences of eating or not eating. Each participant applied all four strategies, which were varied across food stimuli in a within-subjects design. Results showed that downregulation training significantly reduced the desire to eat both trained and untrained foods and decreased hunger levels. In contrast, upregulation training increased hunger levels but did not increase the desire to eat, likely due to regression to the mean. Strategy comparisons, conducted on an exploratory basis, revealed that altering food perception (e.g., imagining food as disgusting or appetizing) was the most effective in modulating the desire to eat during training. These findings provide evidence for both near and far transfer effects of food reappraisal training and underscore its potential applicability for modulating eating behaviors. Further research is required to assess long-term effects, safety, and applicability across diverse populations.

The flower of Madhuca longifolia (family Sapotaceae) has a long history of traditional use in treating fever, inflammation, rheumatism, ulcers, impotence, skin ailments and heart diseases across Southeast Asia. In India, the flower is commonly consumed as a regular food item and is also used as a tonic, appetizer, galactagogue and carminative agent, particularly among rural populations residing near plantations. There are ethnopharmacological claims about several therapeutic properties and antidiabetic activities of the flower, but no scientific evidence is available on this aspect. This review aims to explore the traditional, nutraceutical and pharmacological properties of M. longifolia flowers while identifying the research gaps for establishing its therapeutic use. A comprehensive literature search was conducted on Google Scholar, PubMed, ScienceDirect, ResearchGate, Scopus, and Web of Science from 2000 to 2025. Only research and review articles were considered for analysis. Our findings present that the major bioactive compounds identified in the flower include rutin, quercetin, Mi-saponin A & B, madhucoside A & B, gallic acid and ascorbic acid. In vitro studies indicate that it has strong antioxidant activity, while in-vivo studies on animal models document hepatoprotective, anti-dyslipidemic and antidepressant properties, but these studies are miniscule. Till date no clinical trials have been conducted on the therapeutic efficacy of the flower. Although the flower is naturally rich in several bioactive compounds, its potential therapeutic properties have not been scientifically validated. Focused research is needed to extract and quantify all the key bioactives of the flower. Additionally, studies involving human participants to assess the flower's therapeutic properties are needed to bridge the gap between traditional use and modern pharmacology.

Hunger is a biological drive which can promote unhealthy dietary decisions. Yet, the cognitive mechanisms underlying this effect, and in particular the interactive role of attention and choice processes, remain elusive. To address this gap, we conducted an eye-tracking experiment, in which 70 participants completed a multi-attribute food choice task in hungry and sated states. Confirming our preregistered hypotheses, participants' preference for tasty over healthy food items was amplified by hunger. Attention mediated this influence of hunger, as hungry participants focused more on tasty options, leading them to make less healthy decisions. Rigorous model comparisons revealed that an extension of the recently proposed multi-attribute attentional drift diffusion model best explained choice and response times. According to this model, hunger did not only increase the relative taste compared to health weight, but it also increased the fixation-related discounting of health but not taste information. Our results suggest that the cognitive mechanisms underlying unhealthy dietary decisions under hunger are characterized by a nuanced interplay between attention and the significance assigned to the options' underlying attributes.

The antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of Xianju wheat paste (XJWP), a traditional condiment originating from Hubei Province, China, were evaluated for the first time. XJWP is an essential appetizer and condiment for local residents. It is also utilized for its anti-inflammatory properties in treating minor wounds in daily life, which suggests that it possesses bioactive properties, notably anti-inflammatory effects. In this study, five extracts of XJWP were obtained using different polar solvents, and all of them exhibited antioxidant activity through DPPH, •OH, ABTS free radical scavenging tests and ferric reducing antioxidant power. Subsequently, a lipopolysaccharide-induced RAW264.7 cell model was established to evaluate their anti-inflammatory effects. All of the XJWP extracts significantly inhibited NO secretion in the cells (p < 0.05), and ethyl acetate extract (XJ-EA) exhibited the most potent effect characterized by an EC50 value of 61.92 μg/mL. At a concentration of 40 μg/mL, XJ-EA suppressed the overproduction of TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-1β to normal levels. The in vivo anti-inflammatory activity of XJ-EA was evaluated using a mouse model of ear edema induced by xylene exposure. The result revealed that high-dose XJ-EA reduced the ear edema rate in mice by 56 %, mitigated oxidative damage, inhibited the activity of COX-2 and iNOS, decreased the levels of prostaglandin E2 and NO, and achieved significant anti-inflammatory effects (p < 0.05). Qualitative analysis identified 21 potential anti-inflammatory components in XJ-EA, and molecular docking studies showed favorable interactions with iNOS and COX-2. These findings provide a theoretical foundation for the development of XJWP as a functional condiment, and even as a natural antioxidant and anti-inflammatory drug resource to improve public health and increase the economic value of this product.

The impulse for food is a well-rooted adaptive drive that implies not only the energetic sustenance of the organism but also hedonic-rewarding mechanisms. Inhibitory control is closely associated with decision-making which might moderate/mediate food choices/consumption. Growing evidence supports the involvement of the cerebellum in cognitive inhibitory control, and its role in eating and somato-visceral integration. The current research was aimed at directly investigating the physiological role of the cerebellum in food-related inhibitory control. In a within-subject design, the cerebellar activity of 23 healthy women was modulated by anodal, cathodal, and sham transcranial cerebellar Direct Current Stimulation (tcDCS) combined with the visual presentation of food images. Immediately after receiving combined tcDCS/visual stimulation, participants performed a food-related Go/NoGo task requiring them to react to or withhold a response to high-, low-calorie food and non-food images. All participants completed questionnaires regarding impulsivity traits (by Barratt Impulsiveness Scale-11) and weight concern (by Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire and Eating Attitude Test). The results showed an increased omission rate following cathodal tcDCS, a positive correlation between omissions to food stimuli and psychological assessment of weight concern, and faster and more accurate responses to high-calorie food images. These findings support the cerebellar role in food-related inhibitory control and show that individual concerns about weight can affect Go/NoGo performance with food stimuli. Moreover, they underpin the existence of an implicit cognitive advantage for high-calorie (appetizing) food.