Which option correctly identifies the Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS)?

Which option correctly identifies the Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS)?

• A. It is a biomarker-based test for metabolic syndrome.
• B. It is a clinician-rated scale for mood disorders.
• C. It is a dietary log for daily fat and sugar intake.
• D. It is a self-reported measure for identifying markers of substance dependence related to high fat/high sugar foods.

Answer: (D)

Focusing on how it’s used helps explain why this is the best description. The Yale Food Addiction Scale is a self-report questionnaire that asks about eating behaviors and experiences—such as cravings, loss of control, continued eating despite negative consequences, tolerance, and withdrawal—specifically for foods high in fat and sugar. It’s designed to identify addiction-like symptoms related to those foods, using criteria that parallel substance dependence. It is not a lab biomarker, not a clinician-rated mood assessment, and not simply a diary of daily fat and sugar intake. Because it relies on the person’s own responses to gauge addiction-like features of their eating, it matches the description of a self-reported measure for identifying markers of substance dependence in the context of high fat/high sugar foods.

Focusing on how it’s used helps explain why this is the best description. The Yale Food Addiction Scale is a self-report questionnaire that asks about eating behaviors and experiences—such as cravings, loss of control, continued eating despite negative consequences, tolerance, and withdrawal—specifically for foods high in fat and sugar. It’s designed to identify addiction-like symptoms related to those foods, using criteria that parallel substance dependence. It is not a lab biomarker, not a clinician-rated mood assessment, and not simply a diary of daily fat and sugar intake. Because it relies on the person’s own responses to gauge addiction-like features of their eating, it matches the description of a self-reported measure for identifying markers of substance dependence in the context of high fat/high sugar foods.