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Nannt, J.* ; van den Hoek Ostende, M.M.* ; Tuschen-Caffier, B.* ; Heinrichs, M.* ; Sippel, D.* ; Hallschmid, M. ; Svaldi, J.*

Oxytocin effects on food stimulus processing and food intake in females with or without binge eating disorder.

Int. J. Eating Disord., DOI: 10.1002/eat.24566 (2025)
Publ. Version/Full Text Research data DOI PMC
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OBJECTIVE: Binge eating disorder (BED) is maintained by increased food-related incentive salience, which is reflected by an attentional bias for food. Oxytocin acutely attenuates this bias in patients with anorexia nervosa and reduces food intake in males with normal or increased body weight. However, results in individuals with BED have been inconclusive. We assessed the acute effect of oxytocin on food stimulus processing and reward-driven eating behavior in females with or without BED in a double-blind, placebo-controlled cross-over study. METHOD: Females with BED (n = 48) and female control participants with overweight (n = 46) or normal weight (n = 40) received intranasal oxytocin (24 IU) and, respectively, placebo, after an overnight fast and a standardized breakfast. In participants with a natural menstrual cycle, sessions were scheduled during consecutive luteal phases. Participants completed a food-related dot-probe task with concurrent eye tracking and a bogus taste test measuring snack intake. RESULTS: Oxytocin compared to placebo increased dwell time bias on food stimuli in the BED relative to the overweight control group, in which this effect was reversed. Contrary to our hypothesis, oxytocin increased calorie intake across groups. Exploratory analyses indicated that the latter effect focused on females taking hormonal contraception. DISCUSSION: These results indicate disorder- and, respectively, sex-specific effects of oxytocin on food-related incentive salience and food intake and point to a role of oxytocin in binge eating pathology. They moreover suggest that sex hormones determine the acute effect of oxytocin on eating behavior in females.
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Publication type Article: Journal article
Document type Scientific Article
Keywords Attentional Bias ; Binge Eating Disorder (bed) ; Food Intake ; Hormonal Contraception ; Menstrual Cycle ; Oxytocin
Language english
Publication Year 2025
HGF-reported in Year 2025
ISSN (print) / ISBN 0276-3478
e-ISSN 1098-108X
Publisher Wiley
Reviewing status Peer reviewed
POF-Topic(s) 90000 - German Center for Diabetes Research
Research field(s) Helmholtz Diabetes Center
PSP Element(s) G-502400-001
Grants Open Access Publishing Fund of the University of Tubingen
Scopus ID 105019527633
PubMed ID 41131747
Erfassungsdatum 2025-10-27