Schembre is exploring the underlying cognitive and behavioral aspects of eating behavior that distinguish obese people in an effort to develop strategies to increase self-control around food without dieting. Her team is also designing weight control interventions that use technology-based monitoring systems to promote changes in eating behavior.
She has recently launched a study called that compares the neurological responses to food cues of obese individuals, obese individuals in a weight loss program and lean individuals with no prior weight issues. Schembre and her team are measuring the brain鈥檚 electrical responses (otherwise known as event-related potentials, or ERPs) to images of food and other emotional cues to study whether altered 鈥渞eward circuits鈥� in the brain are associated with excessive body weight and unsuccessful weight loss.
鈥淪everal studies have shown behavioral and neurological similarities between drug addiction and obesity,鈥� says Schembre. 鈥淭hese behavioral and neurological similarities lay the foundation for exploring other parallels between addiction and obesity that could help us design more effective weight control treatments.鈥�
Schembre is available for telephone interviews or live broadcast appearances from MD Anderson's on-site studio.
Research interests: 鈥� Exploring the neural and genetic determinants of excessive weight gain鈥� Assessing weight-related eating behaviors and the contextual factors (e.g., environmental, neurological, physiological, and psychological) that promote obesity using multiple technological and non-technological methodologies鈥� Applying theories of behavior change and the multiple health behavior approach to understanding the initiation and maintenance behaviors that influence energy balance (physical activity and dietary intake)鈥� Developing innovative weight control interventions in young adults and cancer survivors
Memberships include:鈥� Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior鈥� Scientific Research Society鈥� The Obesity Society鈥� Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
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About MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston ranks as one of the world's most respected centers focused on cancer patient care, research, education and prevention. MD Anderson is one of only 41 comprehensive cancer centers designated by the National Cancer Institute. For ten of the past 11 years, including 2013, MD Anderson has ranked No. 1 in cancer care in 鈥淎merica's Best Hospitals,鈥� a survey published annually in . MD Anderson receives a cancer center support grant from the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health (P30 CA016672).
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