Getting to the heart of food craving with resting heart rate variability in adolescents.

Abstract

There is an epidemic of obesity in children and adolescents. Research into the self-regulatory factors that drive eating behavior is of critical importance. Food craving contributes to overeating and difficulty with weight loss and is strongly correlated with self-regulation. High-frequency heart rate variability (HF HRV) reflects parasympathetic activity and is positively associated with self-regulation. Few studies of HF HRV and food craving have been conducted in adolescents. The current study examined the association between HF HRV and food craving in a large-scale sample of healthy adolescents.