Reward-Based Eating Drive Is Associated with Distinct Resting-State Connectivity Patterns: A RED-13 and fMRI Study

Background/Objectives: Eating for pleasure rather than hunger is widespread in the modern food environment. The Reward-Based Eating Drive Scale (RED-13) captures three dimensions of reward-related eating: lack of satiety, loss of control over eating, and preoccupation with food. This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate the relationship between resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) metrics and the RED-13 subscales. Methods: RED-13 scores, subjective food appetite, and resting-state brain function were measured in 99 participants between March 2022 and May 2023. Brain function was assessed using degree centrality (DC), regional homogeneity (ReHo), and voxel-mirrored homotopic connectivity (VMHC). Results: Loss of control over eating and preoccupation with food positively correlated with appetite for high fat, high sweet, and low sweet foods. Loss of control over eating positively correlated with DC in the left cerebellar lobule IX (r = 0.416), ReHo in the left brainstem (r = 0.399), and VMHC in the right and left brainstem (r = 0.432) and negatively with ReHo in the right calcarine sulcus (r = −0.434). The lack of satiety subscale positively correlated with ReHo in the left superior frontal gyrus (r = 0.389). The preoccupation with food subscale positively correlated with DC and ReHo in the right middle frontal gyrus. Conclusions: Reward-based eating measured by RED-13 is associated with distinct patterns in the resting-state fMRI metrics within reward processing and cognitive control. These neural correlates, supported by the association of RED-13 with appetite, are consistent with the hypothesis that RED-13 captures a trait-like disposition toward reward-driven eating that might be reflected in the resting-state brain activity.