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. 2013 Sep 25;8(9):e74836.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0074836. eCollection 2013.

Public views on food addiction and obesity: implications for policy and treatment

Natalia M Lee  1 , Jayne Lucke, Wayne D Hall, Carla Meurk, Frances M Boyle, Adrian Carter
Affiliations

Public views on food addiction and obesity: implications for policy and treatment

Natalia M Lee et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

Background: According to their advocates, neurobiological explanations of overeating, or "food addiction", have the potential to impact public understanding and treatment of obesity. In this study, we examine the public's acceptance of the concept of food addiction as an explanation of overeating and assess its effects upon their attitudes toward obese persons and the treatment of obesity.

Methods and findings: We conducted an online survey of 479 adults from the US (n = 215) and Australia (n = 264). There was substantial support for the idea of food addiction, particularly among obese participants. Over half favoured treating obesity as a type of addiction. Psychotherapy was believed to be the most effective treatment and educational and support programs were the preferred policies to address food addiction. There was very little support for increasing taxes on obesogenic foods. Despite the strong support for seeing obesity as a form of addiction, respondents still saw obesity as primarily the result of personal choices and emphasized the need for individuals to take responsibility for their eating.

Conclusions: Our sample of the general public strongly supported the idea of obesity as a form of food addiction; but this did not translate into support of clinical and public health policies that experts believe are most likely to reduce the prevalence of obesity. The reasons for the apparent disjunction between support for food addiction and a strong emphasis on personal choice for weight warrant further examination.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Responses as to the main cause of obesity.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Proportion of responses based on most common, most effective, and least effective treatments of obesity.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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