Fatty food images can cause overeating leading to weight gain

Food porn may be causing people to overeat, says study.

A new study shows that seeing images of high-calorie foods stimulates the brain’s reward and appetite region causing increased desire for food.

Researchers at the University of Southern California presenting their work at the Endocrine Society's 94th Annual Meeting showed the results of their study of 13 obese, Hispanic women between the ages of 15 and 25, reported io9.

The study saw the women given an MRI while being shown images of fatty foods, low-calorie foods and neutral objects.

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According to Medical News Today, when the women were shown the fatty foods, the brain region that controls appetite and food cravings lit up.

It also increased the women's desire for sweet and high-calorie food.

This finding may have implications for weight loss and the role of the brain in keeping fat off.

“This stimulation of the brain’s reward areas may contribute to overeating and obesity,” said lead author of the study, Kathleen Page of the University of Southern California, according to the Daily Disruption.

“We thought this was a striking finding, because the current environment is inundated with advertisements showing images of high-calorie foods."