Hyperphagia in rats produced by a mixture of fat and sugar.
The hyperphagic and weight-promoting effects of feeding rats a sugar-fat mixture were compared to those of presenting only one of the two nutrients. Experimental groups were fed sugar (sucrose), fat (corn oil), or a sugar-fat mixture as an option to chow; options were in the form of water solutions or emulsions. The control group was fed only chow. The sugar-fat group displayed a robust hyperphagia (greater than 36%), relative to the control group; the hyperphagic response was greater than that observed in the fat group but not in the sugar group. The sugar-fat group selected more calories from the option than the other two experimental groups. Body weight gains were also greater in the sugar-fat group than in the fat and sugar groups. Addition of saccharin to the fat emulsion increased fat and total intakes to levels close to those of the sugar-fat mixture. In a second experiment, the relative palatability of the plain and sweet fat emulsions was assessed with two-bottle preference tests. The sugar-fat mixture was preferred to the saccharin-fat mixture, which in turn was preferred to the plain-fat emulsion. These results suggest that the sweetness of the sugar-fat mixture contributed to the pronounced hyperphagia and obesity obtained with this diet option.
Lucas
F
F
Department of Psychology, Brooklyn College, NY 11210.
Sclafani
A
A
D000818:Animals; D003314:Corn Oil / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004032:Diet; D004655:Emulsions; D002149:Energy Intake / Q000187:drug effects; D005260:Female; D005518:Food Preferences; D006963:Hyperphagia / Q000209:etiology*; D010938:Plant Oils / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D012439:Saccharin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D013395:Sucrose / Q000494:pharmacology*; D015430:Weight Gain / Q000187:drug effects*
D004655:Emulsions; D010938:Plant Oils; D013395:Sucrose; D003314:Corn Oil; D012439:Saccharin