Palatability, food intake, and obesity in normal and hyperphagic rats.

Abstract

An animal''s food intake is related to the stimulus properties, or palatability, of its diet and to its body weight. Both normal and hyperphagic rats were fed different diets (powder, pellets, a high-fat diet, and a mineral and fat diet) and gained weight to different asymptotic levels. Food intake was directly related to the palatability of the diet and inversely related to the animal s body weight. These relationships obtained both in normal and in hypo-thalamic hyperphagic animals. Hyperphagics were more responsive to palatability than were normal animals, but the 2 groups apparently did not differ in their response to body weight.