ABSTRACT
A craving for a specific food can be typically only satisfied by consumption of that food, while hunger can be alleviated by consumption of any type of food. Moreover, food cravings can occur in the absence of hunger; i.e., food deprivation is not a necessary condition for the occurrence of food craving. Food craving is a multidimensional experience as it includes cognitive (e.g., thinking about food), emotional (e.g., desire to eat or changes in mood), behavioral (e.g., seeking and consuming food), and physiological (e.g., salivation) aspects. Although some of these aspects can be measured objectively, subjective self-report appears to be the most viable method for the assessment of food craving. With these self-report measures, food craving can be assessed on a trait level and as a transient state. Several questionnaires have been developed for these purposes in the past two decades, with some of them having been well validated and further refined and some having been developed just recently.
