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Wheel running produces conditioned food aversion
Sarah Jeanne Salvy1, W David Pierce, Donald C Heth
1Department of Psychology, University of Quebec at Montreal, Montreal, Canada. salvys@chi.osu.edu
Physiology & Behavior
|October 22, 2003
Summary
Physical activity, like wheel running, can create a conditioned taste aversion to food flavors. This study shows that rats avoid food presented before exercise, suggesting a link between physical activity and food aversion.
Area of Science:
- Behavioral Neuroscience
- Animal Behavior
- Learning and Memory
Background:
- Conditioned taste aversion (CTA) is typically induced by toxins, but previous research explored its induction via physical activity (wheel running).
- Activity anorexia, a phenomenon where excessive exercise reduces food intake, is hypothesized to involve classical conditioning principles.
- Prior studies used flavored liquids as conditioned stimuli (CSs); this research extends the concept to solid food stimuli.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if conditioned taste aversion (CTA) induced by wheel running extends to solid food stimuli.
- To determine if physical activity can serve as a conditioned stimulus (CS) for aversion to a novel food.
Main Methods:
- Rats were exposed to a novel, distinctively flavored food (CS).
- Groups of rats received 60-minute access to a running wheel (unconditioned stimulus, US) either immediately before, immediately after, or 4 hours after CS exposure.
- Food consumption was measured in non-deprived rats.
Main Results:
- Regimented and contingent periods of wheel running significantly decreased the consumption of a food previously available before exercise.
- The timing of wheel running relative to food exposure influenced the development of aversion.
Conclusions:
- Physical activity, specifically wheel running, can induce a conditioned taste aversion to solid food in rats.
- This finding supports the classical conditioning model of activity anorexia and demonstrates that physical activity can act as a conditioned stimulus for food aversion.