The gender fat gap: Scientists find gender brain signals that promote obesity — with women more likely to give in when sad and men more likely to binge eat
Scientists have found gender-specific brain signals that promote obesity — and this could open the door to his-and-hers weight-loss pills.
They found that obese women are more driven by comfort eating and cravings than obese men, who are more likely to binge eaters who eat lots of calories in one sitting.
Researchers in California asked 183 participants of varying BMI scores to fill out questionnaires and undergo a series of brain MRI scans.
They discovered changes in parts of the brain network connectivity of people who had a higher BMI in both sexes.
Obese women were more likely to have brain changes related to emotional areas, while obese men were more likely to have changes related to gut sensations (stock image)
However, in women, they identified specific regions and networks associated with early-life trauma — consistent with previous studies that found obese women may experience greater anxiety than obese men.
Women may be more susceptible to the sight, smell and taste of ultra-processed foods, the study found, with an increased risk of developing cravings and binge eating.
The results support previous research conducted by the same team, showing that emotional eating and compulsive eating play a major role in obesity in women, but that men’s eating behaviors tend to be influenced by greater awareness of gut sensations.
About four in ten adults in the US are obese and almost a quarter in the UK are overweight, with males being slightly more likely to be overweight.
The team wrote in the journal Brain Communications: “To our knowledge, this is one of the few studies showing an association between gender differences in brain signatures in individuals with high BMI.
“Changes in these networks suggest that women with high BMI have a greater susceptibility to developing hypersensitivity and emphasis on highly palatable foods and increased changes in food intake behaviors such as cravings and binge eating compared to men.
“Our results shed light on the importance of personalized treatments for obesity that take into account the sex of the person affected.”
The latest study, led by researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), recruited 42 men and 62 women of healthy weight and 23 men and 55 women who were either overweight or obese. All were between 18 and 55 years old.
Each was questioned about their behavior and mental health, including childhood trauma, binge eating and bouts of anxiety or depression.
They then underwent three MRI scans to assess the structure, function and connectivity in their brains.
In obese women, the results showed changes in areas associated with early-life trauma — consistent with previous studies that found obese women may experience greater anxiety than obese men.
The scientists also found that these women may be more susceptible to the sight, smell and taste of ultra-processed foods.
This could lead to overeating and put them at higher risk for cravings, they warned.
Learning how to target the different areas in the brain responsible for cravings in men and women could lead to gender-specific drugs, the researchers said.
Are YOU one of the lucky few who are “healthy” and obese?
Research has shown that a growing number of Americans are medically obese but physically healthy.
The “healthy fat” phenomenon is causing physicians to reconsider their view of weight as a general health barometer.
In the study released this week, researchers in China found that 10 percent of the obese US population was “healthy” in 2002, meaning they didn’t suffer from diseases normally associated with excess fat, such as diabetes and high blood pressure become.
According to the study, 15 percent of overweight people are now healthy.
Subcutaneous fat (left) is more visible outside of the body and pads the outer layers of muscle just beneath the skin. People with more of this fat have a “pear-shaped” body. People with more visceral fat (right), which is more dangerous but less noticeable, are at increased risk for many metabolic diseases