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Evidence that a novel transdiagnostic eating disorder treatment reduces reward region response to the thin beauty ideal and high-calorie binge foods

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 October 2021

Eric Stice ,
Sonja Yokum ,
Paul Rohde ,
Jeff Gau  and
Heather Shaw
Eric Stice*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
Sonja Yokum
Affiliation:
Oregon Research Institute, Eugene, OR, USA
Paul Rohde
Affiliation:
Oregon Research Institute, Eugene, OR, USA
Jeff Gau
Affiliation:
Oregon Research Institute, Eugene, OR, USA
Heather Shaw
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
*
Author for correspondence: Eric Stice, E-mail: estice@stanford.edu
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Abstract

Background

Findings from brain imaging studies with small samples can show limited reproducibility. Thus, we tested whether the evidence that a transdiagnostic eating disorder treatment reduces responsivity of brain valuation regions to thin models and high-calorie binge foods, the intervention targets, from a smaller earlier trial emerged when we recruited additional participants.

Methods

Women with DSM-5 eating disorders (N = 138) were randomized to the dissonance-based body project treatment (BPT) or a waitlist control condition and completed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans assessing neural response to thin models and high-calorie foods at pretest and posttest.

Results

BPT v. control participants showed significantly greater reductions in responsivity of regions implicated in reward valuation (caudate) and attentional motivation (precuneus) to thin v. average-weight models, echoing findings from the smaller sample. Data from this larger sample also provided novel evidence that BPT v. control participants showed greater reductions in responsivity of regions implicated in reward valuation (ventrolateral prefrontal cortex) and food craving (hippocampus) to high-calorie binge foods v. low-calorie foods, as well as significantly greater reductions in eating disorder symptoms, abstinence from binge eating and purging behaviors, palatability ratings for high calorie foods, monetary value for high-calorie binge foods, and significantly greater increases in attractiveness ratings of average weight models.

Conclusions

Results from this larger sample provide evidence that BPT reduces valuation of the thin ideal and high-calorie binge foods, the intervention targets, per objective brain imaging data, and produces clinically meaningful reductions in eating pathology.

Keywords

Dissonanceeating disorderstarget engagementtransdiagnostic treatment
Type
Original Article
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 53 , Issue 6 , April 2023 , pp. 2252 - 2262
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press

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