Notably, exposure of the animals the two procedures (the hypercaloric diet and chronic stress) produced lower weights than exposure of the animals to the hypercaloric diet alone. Therefore, we propose that the effect of the cafeteria diet on the establishment of obesity was higher than the weight loss imposed by stress. In addition, previous studies using the same stress model demonstrated an increase in sweet food intake [26] and [94], and this effect was associated with the increased body weight observed in the animals exposed to the two protocols

(the hypercaloric diet and chronic stress). In our study AZD2281 mouse the stressed rats that were fed a high-calorie diet exhibited a higher Lee index, which represents obesity. In this study, we observed significantly increased adipose tissue depots (MAT, SAT and VAT) in the animals exposed to the high-calorie diet. Several studies have reported that in animals subjected to approximately 1 h or less of restraint stress daily, hypercaloric diets cause increased abdominal adipose tissue deposition [8], [28], [82], [45] and [97]. Increased adipose tissue mass is the primary characteristic of obesity and is associated with the consumption of high-calorie foods [69]. In this study, the animals fed the cafeteria diet became Cyclopamine ic50 obese; therefore we propose that the effect of the cafeteria diet on establishing obesity [28], [59] and [89] was higher than the weight loss imposed by the stress. Palatable food that

is rich in fat and carbohydrates (“comfort food”) decreases the stress response in chronically stressed rats [80]. Sweet, fatty foods that are low in protein may also provide alleviation from stress in vulnerable people via the selleck enhanced function of the serotonergic system [39]. We used a hypercaloric diet exhibiting features that influence the choice of foods. Eating a small amount of sweet food immediately and selectively improves an experimentally

induced negative mood state, and the effect of the sweet food, e.g., chocolate, is because of its palatability. It has been hypothesized that the immediate mood effects of palatable foods contribute to the habit of eating to cope with stress [68]. It has been demonstrated that even if they are not hungry, humans [1], [41] and [107] and animals [20] increase their food intake following stress or a negative emotion [4] and [67]. Furthermore, the type of food eaten tends to be high in sugar or fat, or both [27], [43] and [80]. On the other hand, in terms of protective functions, studies have shown that women categorized as viscerally obese exhibited habituation to repeated stressors, whereas their lean counterparts did not exhibit this behavior. Similar findings have been reported in rats [65]. Therefore, the available evidence from human studies supports the validity of the animal model and the working hypothesis in terms of both the drive-inducing effects of stress and the stress-reducing effects of eating.