A Neurological Study on the Effect of the Cingulate Cortex in Determining Food Choice in Individuals with Eating Disorders and Active Individuals

Abstract

Over twenty-eight million Americans currently struggle with eating disorders (NEDA), which are characterized by aberrant eating behaviors, distorted body image, and pervasive preoccupations with food. The cingulate cortex, located in the cerebral cortex, serves many functions, including emotional regulation, cognitive processing, and decision-making. Specifically, the anterior cingulate cortex is involved in linking reward and punishment information and establishing emotional responses to specified behaviors and actions (Rolls, 2019).

The purpose of this study is to use information obtained by electroencephalogram (EEG) to make inferences about the cingulate cortex's role in food perception in three comparator groups: individuals with self-identified eating disorders, individuals who are chronic exercisers, and a healthy control group. Chronic exercisers are classified as individuals who participate in vigorous aerobic exercise for at least 30 minutes, 4 times a week. Once data collection begins, researchers will evaluate neural responses as participants are shown 50 images of different foods and classify and classify them based on their perception of the foods being good or bad. The hypothesis in this study is that there will be similar neural responses/similar perceptions of food in the active group and the individuals with eating disorders. The goal of this study is to analyze the role of the cingulate cortex in food perception and observe the neural responses for different foods in specific groups.