THE ESSENTIAL
- A smaller nucleus accumbens can indicate if a person is at higher risk of developing chronic pain.
- Patients with chronic lower back pain have reported that foods high in fat and carbohydrates, such as ice cream and cookies, have been a problem for them over time. Their brain scans showed disruption of satiety signals.
How is the eating behavior of patients with low back pain affected before and after experiencing chronic pain, compared to people whose pain has subsided? This is the question asked by American researchers. In order to answer this, they carried out a study, of which the results were published in the journal PLOS One.
“We hypothesized that the nucleus accumbens (a small area of the brain known for its role in decision-making) would be directly involved in the hedonic processing (eating for pleasure) of high-fat foods in patients with pain, due to its well-established role in hedonic eating and fat ingestion, and its emerging role in chronic pain.” can we read in the works.
To carry out their study, the scientists looked at the brain’s response to sweet and fatty foods. All participants, including people with acute low back pain, adults with chronic back pain and those in good health, had to perform behavioral tests and brain scans.
Disturbance of eating behavior in patients with chronic pain
According to the results, patients affected by chronic back pain and patients suffering from acute lower back pain showed a disturbance in their eating behavior. “From a neurological perspective, only patients with chronic back pain and those affected by acute low back pain showed a strong and direct relationship between hedonic perception of high-fat foods and nucleus accumbens volume,” the researchers said.
According to the authors, the disturbance in eating behavior occurs specifically after pain chronicization and is accompanied by structural changes in the nucleus accumbens. “These results suggest that obesity in chronic pain patients may not be due to a lack of movement, but that they need to change the way they eat,” said Paul Geha, lead author of the study.