Resistance to extinction of learned flavour preferences

澳大利亚是几个正在经历肥胖流行病的国家之一，这种流行病将在未来几十年内产生重大疾病后果。 肥胖是由于持续的喜好和过量的食物摄入，这些食物超越了通常保持体重不变的身体机制。 暴饮暴食的一个重要因素是食物的感官特性（风味）刺激短期食欲的能力。 在老鼠和人类的味道偏好学习之间有着密切的相似之处。 增加对影响大鼠偏好持续性的因素的了解，将有助于在群体和个体水平上更有效地预防暴饮暴食。

Australia is one of several countries experiencing an epidemic of obesity that will have major disease consequences for future decades. Obesity results from sustained liking and surplus intake of foods that override the bodily mechanisms that normally keep bodyweight constant. An important element of overeating is the ability of the sensory properties of foods (flavours) to stimulate short-term appetite. There are close parallels between flavour preference learning in rats and humans. Increasing understanding of the factors that influence persistence of preferences in rats will contribute to more effective programs at both a mass and an individual level for preventing overeating.