Modulating satiety with neuro-music: a frequency-specific acoustic approach to appetite control

Global obesity rates are rising, necessitating innovative interventions for appetite control. This study investigated whether subjective satiety-referred to as "hunger stress"-can be modulated using frequency-specific acoustic stimulation (neuro-music) designed to target neural markers associated with fullness.

The research was conducted in two phases. Experiment 1 (N = 22) used EEG to identify neural oscillations associated with satiety and behavioral tasks to measure attentional bias toward food cues. Experiment 2 (N = 600) was a large-scale remote study evaluating the efficacy of neuro-music. Participants were assigned to beta/gamma, alpha, or control tracks and rated their hunger and "urge-to-eat" in two states: predining and post-snack.

Experiment 1 identified that satiety is characterized by significant elevations in beta (14-30 Hz) and gamma (>30 Hz) oscillations, along with a moderate increase in low-alpha (~9 Hz) power; these neural markers were correlated with reduced attentional bias toward food. In Experiment 2, although all tracks showed an initial placebo effect, only the beta/gamma neuro-music produced a prolonged suppression of hunger (p = 0.012) and urge-to-eat (p = 0.004) at 30 min post-listening. This effect was state-dependent, occurring only in the predining condition.

These findings suggest that entraining high-frequency cortical rhythms can selectively extend satiety signals during periods of metabolic need. Although the effects were transient (approximately 30 min) and did not persist after snacking, frequency-targeted neuro-music represents a promising, non-invasive tool for assisting with acute dietary regulation and appetite management.