Researchers at the University of California have found that the drivers of obesity differ between women and men. The findings, published in Brain Communication, highlight gender-specific patterns in how the brain and experiences shape weight-related behaviors.
The study built a picture from a group of nearly 200 adults aged 18 to 55. Each participant completed comprehensive questionnaires covering childhood adversity, anxiety, eating behaviors, and related factors. In addition, every person underwent three distinct brain MRI scans to map structural and functional differences.
Analyses revealed distinct brain changes in women who reported early trauma. These patterns align with the idea that obesity in women may be linked to higher anxiety levels, which can influence responses to the sensory cues of ultra-processed foods. In practical terms, this makes it more challenging for some women to disengage from foods that are highly tempting in taste, texture, and aroma, potentially contributing to longer episodes of consumption.
Consequently, emotion-driven binge eating appears to play a meaningful role in obesity for women. By contrast, the same link was not observed as strongly in men, who showed different patterns of bodily responses to food signals and gut sensations.
“Though a direct causal path remains to be proven, the robust associations among clinical markers such as anxiety, depression, obesity, and neural signatures emphasize the bidirectional communication along the gut-brain axis,” the researchers noted. The work underscores how this dialogue between gut signals and brain processing can influence weight-related behavior across sexes.