Assessing food-evoked emotions using functional magnetic resonance imaging: A systematic review

Research on food-related emotions has increased over the decades. Advances in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) have made it possible to investigate the neural mechanisms of food-evoked emotional responses to various food-related sensory stimuli. A systematic review of the literature was conducted on studies using fMRI to track brain activations involved in food-induced pleasantness, liking, wanting, craving, disgust and other negative emotions. 52 articles were included, of which 39 reported on food-induced pleasantness, 9 reported on food craving/wanting, 15 reported on food-induced negative emotions and some of the articles included investigations of both positive and negative emotions. Brain areas involved in the processing of food-induced positive (e.g., pleasantness) and negative (e.g., disgust) emotions are highlighted. The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) was thought to be the region most likely to be associated with food pleasantness, but it was also involved in food-induced negative emotions. Activations in the amygdala and insula were more often common for negative than positive food-induced emotions. Moreover, future issues are discussed, including standardized food stimuli, advanced fMRI analysis approaches such as functional connectivity, and multivariate pattern analyses. Despite some limitations, fMRI provides a unique opportunity to assess cortical and deep brain structures that are involved in the processing of food-related emotional experiences.