Gourmand Syndrome: A Desire for Fine Food Associated with Brain Lesions

Following is a news release based on an article published in the May issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN). The AAN is an association of more than 14,500 neurologists and neuroscience professionals dedicated to improving patient care through education and research. For a copy of the full article or for more information, contact Sarah Parsons or Rona Stewart at 612-623-8115 or by e-mail [email protected].

Gourmand Syndrome: A Desire for Fine Food Associated with Brain Lesions

Researchers have discovered a new eating disorder in which some patients with right anterior brain lesions suddenly become compulsively addicted to thinking about and eating fine foods. Called Gourmand syndrome, the new disorder is presented in the May issue of Neurology. ìGourmand syndrome is a rare benign eating disorder strongly linked to damage of the right hemisphere of the brain,î said neurologist Theodor Landis, MD, of Geneva, Switzerland, co-author of the study. Abnormal changes in the structure of the brain, such as stroke, tumors, and seizures are some of the causes of these lesions. This strange eating behavior does not correspond to any known category of eating disorders. This study assessed 723 patients with known or suspected single brain lesions. Gourmand syndrome was observed in 36 of these patients. Of these, 34 patients had a lesion in the right anterior area of the brain. For example one patient was a business man who preferred a tennis match to a fine dinner until he suffered a hemorrhage deep in the right side of his brain. He then became so obsessed with fine food that he couldnít stop talking or writing about food. The patient also couldnít resist satisfying his cravings for gourmet foods. Another patient was a political journalist and an average eater who suffered an anterior right hemisphere stroke. He became so preoccupied with food that when he was able to return to work he gave up his job and became a columnist for the fine dining section of the newspaper. Not every person who has a right-sided brain lesion will develop this syndrome, but there is a strong correlation between the two. ìThis new syndrome shows the public that addiction and compulsion disorders, even ones that arenít debilitating, can be due to damage to a limited area of the brain,î said psychologist Marianne Regard, PhD, of Zurich, Switzerland, co-author of the study.