EATING

• What is a reliable signal of high-energy food?

  Sweetness
• What did Steiner (1977) find about newborn babies and sugar?

  They produced positive facial expressions
• Why does it make evolutionary sense for babies to consume fructose?

  Fructose provides quick energy from fruit
• At what age do humans show a preference for salt?

  About 4 months
• What did Harris et al. (1990) find about breastfed babies and salt preference?

  They preferred salted cereal at 16-25 weeks
• What does the preference for fat suggest about human evolution?

  Learning a preference for fat aided survival
• How many calories does fat have compared to carbohydrates/proteins?

  Twice the calories
• What is food neophobia?

  Innate unwillingness to try unfamiliar foods
• When is food neophobia most pronounced?

  From 2 to 6 years of age
• What does Birch (1999) claim about food neophobia?

  It appears when children explore foods independently
• Why is food neophobia considered adaptive?

  It prevents children from eating harmful foods
• What happens to neophobia as children learn about food safety?

  It reduces and encourages a varied diet
• What is taste aversion?

  Innate ability to dislike harmful foods
• What did Seligman (1971) propose about taste aversion?

  Some aversions are acquired quicker than others
• What did Garcia and Koelling (1966) find about rats and taste aversion?

  Rats learned aversion to sweetened water with poison
• Why are bitter tastes considered an adaptive taste aversion?

  Bitter tastes signal potential toxins in food
• What did Steiner (1977) find about babies' reactions to bitter taste?

  Negative facial expressions before learning preference
• What are the processes involved in learning food preferences?

  • Classical conditioning: associating new foods with liked flavors
  • Operant conditioning: reinforcement from parents
  • Social influences: family, peers, and media
• How does classical conditioning contribute to food preferences?

  It helps associate new foods with flavors we like
• How do parents influence children's food preferences?

  Through rewards and punishments for eating
• What is social learning theory (SLT) in relation to food preferences?

  Children imitate role models' eating behaviors
• What role do peers play in children's food preferences?

  Children change preferences based on peer observations
• How does media influence children's food preferences?

  Through advertisements for unhealthy foods
• What are cultural influences on food preferences?

  Cultural norms establish attitudes towards meals
• How do classical conditioning and vicarious reinforcement relate to cultural influences?

  They shape food preferences through positive associations
• What is the role of the hypothalamus in eating behavior?

  It regulates blood glucose levels
• How do glucose-sensing neurons in the hypothalamus function?

  They detect fluctuations in blood glucose concentration
• What is the function of the lateral hypothalamus (LH)?

  It triggers hunger when glucose levels drop
• What happens when neuropeptide Y (NPY) is injected into rats' hypothalamus?

  They eat excessively and become obese
• What is the role of the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH)?

  It signals when to stop eating
• What happens if the VMH is damaged?

  It can lead to excessive eating and weight gain
• What is ghrelin and its role in appetite?

  It stimulates appetite when the stomach is empty
• What did Wren et al. (2001) find about ghrelin?

  Intravenous ghrelin increases food intake
• What is leptin and its role in appetite?

  It suppresses appetite when fat levels are high
• What did Licinio et al. (2004) find about leptin replacement therapy?

  It led to significant weight loss in individuals
• What did Holland et al. (1988) find about anorexia nervosa in families?

  MZ twins had a 56% concordance rate
• What is a candidate gene associated with anorexia nervosa?

  Ephx2 is linked to cholesterol metabolism
• What did Boraska et al. (2014) find in their GWAS study?

  Identified 72 genetic variations, none linked to AN
• What role do serotonin and dopamine play in anorexia nervosa?

  They are involved in AN-related behaviors
• What did Bailer and Kaye (2011) find about serotonin levels in AN?

  Low levels return to normal after weight recovery