{
  "abstract": "Background: Monosodium glutamate (MSG), a widely used flavor enhancer, increases food palatability and may influence eating behavior. Although considered safe from a toxicological perspective, its potential association with compulsive eating patterns remains unclear. University students are particularly vulnerable to irregular dietary habits and high consumption of ultra-processed foods. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 555 Palestinian university students aged 18–30 years. MSG intake was assessed using a composite dietary exposure scale and categorized into tertiles (low, moderate, high). Food addiction was measured using the Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS), binge-eating severity using the Binge Eating Scale (BES), and perceived stress using the Perceived Stress Scale–4 (PSS-4). Logistic regression examined associations between MSG intake and food addiction, while linear regression assessed relationships with binge-eating severity and YFAS symptom counts, adjusting for age, gender, BMI, perceived stress, and academic year. Results: Food addiction was present in 24.7% of participants and increased across MSG tertiles (15.7% low vs. 33.0% high; p < 0.001). High MSG intake was associated with increased odds food addiction (adjusted OR = 2.75, 95% CI 1.63–4.65, p < 0.001). Higher MSG consumption was associated with greater binge-eating severity (β = 1.25, p < 0.001) and increased YFAS symptom counts, indicating a dose–response relationship. BMI and perceived stress were independent predictors of both outcomes. The adjusted model showed acceptable discrimination (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve [AUC] = 0.71). Conclusions: Higher MSG intake was associated with increased food addiction symptoms and binge-eating severity among university students, suggesting frequent consumption of flavor-enhanced foods is a correlate of reward-driven eating behaviors, warranting further investigation.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "College of Medicine, Hebron University, Hebron, Palestine",
    "School of Medicine, University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan",
    "Faculty of Medicine, An-Najah National University, Nablus, Palestine"
  ],
  "article_type": "Research Article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 7,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Lina K. Al Jabry",
      "orcid": "0009-0000-3524-0432"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Abdallah Shawwa"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Yomna Sarhan"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Rola Issa"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Omar Abweh",
      "orcid": "0009-0006-7738-7268"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Haneen Qashqeesh",
      "orcid": "0009-0006-6789-8777"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Hazem Alagha"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/27nvw3e07ep9n.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1371/journal.pone.0360433",
  "fulltext_url": "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13734507/",
  "id": "27nvw3e07ep9n",
  "issns": [
    "1932-6203"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0360433",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Addiction"
    ],
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      "heading",
      "Behavior"
    ],
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      "heading",
      "Behavioral Addiction"
    ],
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      "heading",
      "Biology and Life Sciences"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "Diet"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "Eating"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "Eating Habits"
    ],
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      "Food"
    ],
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      "Habits"
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      "Nutrition"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "Physiological Processes"
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    [
      "heading",
      "Physiology"
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      "heading",
      "Psychological Stress"
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  "pmcid": "PMC13734507",
  "pmid": "42981261",
  "published": "2026-11-04",
  "publisher": "Public Library of Science",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/27nvw3e07ep9n.ris",
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    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-05T12:20:11Z",
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  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "heading:Biology and Life Sciences",
      "subfield": "general"
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    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "plos:nutrition",
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  "title": "Association between habitual MSG consumption and compulsive eating behaviors in university students: A cross-sectional study",
  "title_text": "Association between habitual MSG consumption and compulsive eating behaviors in university students: A cross-sectional study",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-08T12:24:00Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/27nvw3e07ep9n",
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