Food addiction is a condition, which is characterized by an inability to stop eating certain foods giving rise to a physical craving for that particular food. Since food is associated with the regulation of pleasure centers in the brain, there can be a possibility of food addiction leading to obsessive behavior and weight gain.

The debate on the existence of food addiction is quite controversial. An article published in the Journal of Nutrition in 2009 by Marcia Pelchat from Monell Chemical Senses Centre, Philadelphia stated that the evidence in favor of or against food addiction is mainly based on similarities between food craving and drug craving. It is probably due to the way food is consumed that leads to overeating behavior. Normal-weight individuals did not show food addiction behavior in a greater magnitude, as compared to obese individuals. It was also found that commonly palatable foods are not a cause of excessive eating leading to obesity, but even non-palatable foods can be eaten in excess.

Another study carried out by Marcia Pelchat and Joyce Corsica in 2010, in the Journal for Current Opinions in Gastroenterology strongly supported food addiction behavior. Recent evidence in behavioral and neurobiological changes show that food addiction is similar to substance dependence and is met by chronic overeating, frequent episodes of binge eating, and compulsive overeating. Learned behaviors, external food sensitivity, and biological predisposition are said to contribute to food addiction symptoms. The study also indicates that obesity is not a cause of food addiction.

Foods, such as chocolates, ice creams, cookies, candies, bread, and pasta, are typically said to cause food cravings. The Rudd Centre for Food Policy & Obesity at Yale came up with a scale to measure food addiction called ‘The Yale Food Addiction Scale’. This is a survey that looks into the eating patterns of people who are unable to control the intake of certain foods. A study conducted by Yale University, published in the Archives of General Psychiatry 2011, states that implications of neural activity lead to addictive eating behavior and substance dependence. There is an increase in neural activity in response to food cues and a reduction in the activation of the inhibitory regions related to food intake.

The Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Bristol, published a study in 2000 titled ‘Food Craving and Food “Addiction”: A Critical Review of the Evidence from a Bio-psychosocial Perspective’ which stated that though there are certain similarities that exist between eating and drug use, food addiction should not be viewed as addictive behavior. When attempts are made to restrict a certain food the desire to eat that particular food increases which is known as a ‘craving’. This is regarded as normal behavior and is not addictive in nature.

The Food and Drink Federation believes that there is no evidence that physical food addiction occurs in human beings and that food addiction is not a cause of obesity. It is better to say “addiction to eating rather than food addiction” - the food cravings experienced by people and frequent episodes of binge eating or compulsive eating are due to behavioral patterns in human beings and not due to any neurochemical changes or so-called addiction.

However controversial the debate on the existence of food addiction can be, there is no denying that some people cannot control their intake of certain foods and indulge in episodes of compulsive eating, overeating, or binge eating. Such food intake patterns can be harmful to health. Expert advice may be necessary for treating such food-related behavior.