Stress relief by 'comfort foods' may vary between sexes and across the estrous cycle

(Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior) Researchers at the University of Cincinnati have found that the brain networks that mediate stress relief after eating highly palatable foods may vary between males and females, and may also depend on the stage of the estrous cycle. The study performed by Ann Egan, a doctoral candidate in the University of Cincinnati Neuroscience Graduate Program in the laboratory of Dr. Yvonne Ulrich-Lai, Ph.D., used a rodent model of 'comfort food' to investigate t...