Definition and research guide
This page combines a MeSH definition, publication statistics and selected research abstracts. It is a starting point for reading the literature, not a medical textbook or a systematic evidence review.
Content available: 3 complete abstracts (622 words), 9 references. Full article text is not stored or reproduced here; follow the PMID, DOI or PMC links to read the original sources and their access terms.
Definition
Behavioral responses or sequences associated with eating including modes of feeding, rhythmic patterns of eating, and time intervals.
Definition: NLM Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) scope note (Public domain (U.S. National Library of Medicine); attribution requested). View the MeSH record.
Also known as: Behavior, Feeding; Behaviors, Feeding; Feeding Behaviors; Feeding-Related Behavior; Behavior, Feeding-Related; Behaviors, Feeding-Related; Feeding Related Behavior; Feeding-Related Behaviors.
Where it fits in the MeSH classification
- Broader topics
- Behavior, Animal; Behavior; Nutritional Physiological Phenomena
- Narrower topics
- Cannibalism; Carnivory; Coprophagia; Herbivory; Bottle Feeding; Breast Feeding; Emotional Eating; Fasting; Food Fussiness; Food Preferences
Research landscape
PubMed indexes 214,277 records tagged with the MeSH heading “Feeding Behavior” (counts retrieved 2026-10-31). 43,891 of them (20.5%) were published from 2020 onward, and the busiest period so far is 2010-2019 with 72,018 records.
Reviews account for 20,275 records (9.5%) and meta-analyses for 1,982. Randomized controlled trials number 10,701 (5.0%) as a share of all records on the topic.
Show the data
| Period | Records |
|---|---|
| through 1999 | 59,085 |
| 2000-2009 | 39,283 |
| 2010-2019 | 72,018 |
| 2020 onward | 43,891 |
Publication-type chart data
| Type | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Reviews | 20,275 | 9.5% |
| Meta-analyses | 1,982 | 0.9% |
| Randomized controlled trials | 10,701 | 5.0% |
Method: PubMed query "Feeding Behavior"[MeSH Terms] with publication-type and date filters, retrieved 2026-10-31.
Reading the evidence in anatomy and physiology
Anatomy describes how body structures are built and physiology describes how they normally work, so most findings here are descriptive or mechanistic rather than evidence about treatment. Much of what is known comes from dissection, imaging, tissue studies and experiments in animals, and measurements in healthy volunteers can differ from those in people with disease or at different ages. Normal ranges vary between individuals and populations. Check whether a result was measured in people or in another species, the age and health of the participants, and the method used.
Evidence from open-access studies
These open-access studies come from PubMed’s best-match results for this heading (papers whose main topic it is), ranked here by citation count, with one recent addition. Each abstract is reproduced in full under its recorded open licence so that you can read the authors’ own words. They illustrate the literature; they are not a systematic summary of it. Citation counts measure attention, not reliability or clinical benefit.
| Study / authors | Year | Source label / design | Europe PMC citations | Licence / source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A behavioral architecture for realistic simulations of Drosophila larva locomotion and foraging | 2026 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 3 | cc by PMID 42605607 · DOI · PMC13480992 |
| Lactation induction, shared breastfeeding, and the right to opacity: a reflection on the use of health protocols and practices for women who have relationships with women | 2026 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 1 | cc by PMID 42585481 · DOI · PMC13689973 |
| Group recognition in the German cockroach, a subsocial omnivore, is based on faecal odour preference that is modulated by coprophagy, diet and learning | 2026 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 1 | cc by PMID 42551892 · DOI · PMC13585144 |
A behavioral architecture for realistic simulations of Drosophila larva locomotion and foraging [1]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- The Drosophila larva is extensively used as a model organism in neuroethological studies where precise behavioral tracking enables the statistical analysis of individual and population-level behavioral metrics that can inform mathematical models of larval behavior.
- Closing excerpt
- Our behavioral architecture is ideally suited for the modular combination of neuromechanical, neural, or mere statistical model components, facilitating their evaluation, comparison, extension, and integration into multifunctional control architectures.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (165 words)
The Drosophila larva is extensively used as a model organism in neuroethological studies where precise behavioral tracking enables the statistical analysis of individual and population-level behavioral metrics that can inform mathematical models of larval behavior. Here, we propose a hierarchical model architecture comprising three layers to facilitate modular model construction, closed-loop simulations, and direct comparisons between empirical and simulated data. At the motor layer, the autonomous locomotory model is capable of performing exploration. Based on novel kinematic analyses, our model features intermittent forward crawling that is phasically coupled to lateral bending. At the second layer, navigation is achieved via active sensing in a simulated environment, and top-down modulation of locomotion. At the top layer, behavioral adaptation entails associative learning. We evaluate virtual larval behavior across agent-based simulations of autonomous free exploration, chemotaxis, and odor preference testing. Our behavioral architecture is ideally suited for the modular combination of neuromechanical, neural, or mere statistical model components, facilitating their evaluation, comparison, extension, and integration into multifunctional control architectures.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 42605607 · DOI · PMC13480992
Lactation induction, shared breastfeeding, and the right to opacity: a reflection on the use of health protocols and practices for women who have relationships with women [2]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Lactation induction is the process of stimulating milk production when pregnancy has not occurred, but there is still a desire to breastfeed.
- Closing excerpt
- We propose a reflection within the field of healthcare on its onto-epistemological assumptions, suggesting the right to opacity as a guiding principle in the construction of healthcare practices, acknowledging that it is not necessary to understand the other - or their life logics - in order to form a care alliance that goes beyond rigid, standardized protocols.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (252 words)
Lactation induction is the process of stimulating milk production when pregnancy has not occurred, but there is still a desire to breastfeed. Initially designed for adoptive mothers and mothers through surrogacy, the protocol does not explore other uses, such as in cases of LGBTQIA+ families, in which breastfeeding may also be a significant symbol in the transition to parenthood. Thus, we seek to explore the complexities of the use of lactation protocols by cisgender women couples who have chosen co-lactate. This article is based on qualitative research conducted through semi-structured interviews with women in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, between June and October 2024. Seven women participated: three couples and one non-gestational mother. From this analysis, two analytical categories emerged: the first addresses the sources of information used by the participants, highlighting the key role of information networks built through the internet and the notable absence of healthcare professionals as references in this process. The second category discusses the participants' experiences with the induction protocol, highlighting the challenges of balancing their routines with the protocol's demands and the importance of healthcare professionals who act as positive deviants from the hegemonic model of care. We propose a reflection within the field of healthcare on its onto-epistemological assumptions, suggesting the right to opacity as a guiding principle in the construction of healthcare practices, acknowledging that it is not necessary to understand the other - or their life logics - in order to form a care alliance that goes beyond rigid, standardized protocols.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 42585481 · DOI · PMC13689973
Group recognition in the German cockroach, a subsocial omnivore, is based on faecal odour preference that is modulated by coprophagy, diet and learning [3]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Faecal odours attract cockroaches to aggregations, where conspecific faeces provide nutrients and seed the gut microbiota.
- Closing excerpt
- We propose that these mechanisms guide neonates towards natal aggregations, facilitating acquisition of a locally adapted gut microbial community.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (205 words)
Faecal odours attract cockroaches to aggregations, where conspecific faeces provide nutrients and seed the gut microbiota. Because these odours arise from the gut and faecal microbial communities, which are shaped by coprophagy and diet, discrete aggregations within a heterogeneous landscape can produce distinct faecal odour profiles. How such odour diversity influences recognition, group affiliation and ultimately aggregation remains unclear. We manipulated coprophagy and then diet quality in gnotobiotic nymphs to generate groups with distinct faecal odour signatures, then raised them to the adult stage and collected their faeces for behavioural assays. Naive nymphs lacking coprophagy experience were equally attracted to faecal odours from all treatment groups, suggesting an innate attraction to conspecific faeces. By contrast, experienced nymphs preferred the faecal odour of their natal group over foreign groups, suggesting learned group-specific recognition. In associative learning assays pairing a faecal odour with a glucose reward, nymphs preferentially aggregated with the conditioned odour over novel odours. These results show that aggregation in neonate cockroaches is mediated by both an innate attraction to conspecific faecal odour and learned preferences for specific odourants encountered during coprophagy soon after they hatch. We propose that these mechanisms guide neonates towards natal aggregations, facilitating acquisition of a locally adapted gut microbial community.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 42551892 · DOI · PMC13585144
Key reviews and meta-analyses
The most cited review-type papers among PubMed’s best-match results for this heading, listed with bibliographic details only. Follow the links for the full text and access terms.
- Research article Skipping breakfast is associated with overweight and obesity: A systematic review and meta-analysis [4]
- Research article Stress and eating behaviours in healthy adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis [5]
- Research article Climate change alters plant-herbivore interactions [6]
- Research article Effects of time-restricted feeding on body weight and metabolism. A systematic review and meta-analysis [7]
- Research article Relation of Different Fruit and Vegetable Sources With Incident Cardiovascular Outcomes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Prospective Cohort Studies [8]
- Research article Systematic review and meta-analysis of breastfeeding and later overweight or obesity expands on previous study for World Health Organization [9]
References
- Sakagiannis PP, Jürgensen AM, Nawrot MP. A behavioral architecture for realistic simulations of Drosophila larva locomotion and foraging. . 2026. PMID 42605607 · DOI · PMC13480992
- Melo FEB, Scagliusi FB. Lactation induction, shared breastfeeding, and the right to opacity: a reflection on the use of health protocols and practices for women who have relationships with women. . 2026. PMID 42585481 · DOI · PMC13689973
- Wada-Katsumata A, Hamilton JA, Kakumanu ML, Schal C. Group recognition in the German cockroach, a subsocial omnivore, is based on faecal odour preference that is modulated by coprophagy, diet and learning. . 2026. PMID 42551892 · DOI · PMC13585144
- Ma X, Chen Q, Pu Y, Guo M, Jiang Z, Huang W, et al.. Skipping breakfast is associated with overweight and obesity: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Obes Res Clin Pract. 2020. PMID 31918985 · DOI
- Hill D, Conner M, Clancy F, Moss R, Wilding S, Bristow M, et al.. Stress and eating behaviours in healthy adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Health Psychol Rev. 2022. PMID 33913377 · DOI
- Hamann E, Blevins C, Franks SJ, Jameel MI, Anderson JT. Climate change alters plant-herbivore interactions. New Phytol. 2021. PMID 33111316 · DOI
- Pellegrini M, Cioffi I, Evangelista A, Ponzo V, Goitre I, Ciccone G, et al.. Effects of time-restricted feeding on body weight and metabolism. A systematic review and meta-analysis. Rev Endocr Metab Disord. 2020. PMID 31808043 · DOI
- Zurbau A, Au-Yeung F, Blanco Mejia S, Khan TA, Vuksan V, Jovanovski E, et al.. Relation of Different Fruit and Vegetable Sources With Incident Cardiovascular Outcomes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Prospective Cohort Studies. J Am Heart Assoc. 2020. PMID 33000670 · DOI · PMC7792377
- Horta BL, Rollins N, Dias MS, Garcez V, Pérez-Escamilla R. Systematic review and meta-analysis of breastfeeding and later overweight or obesity expands on previous study for World Health Organization. Acta Paediatr. 2023. PMID 35727183 · DOI
About this article
- Sources
- NLM Medical Subject Headings (definition, synonyms); NCBI PubMed (counts, identifiers); Europe PMC (open-access abstracts and citation counts).
- Verification
- Every reference was resolved against PubMed on 2026-10-31; title, year and DOI matched.
- Review state
- automated source verified; no human expert review has been recorded yet.
- Version
- 1, last updated 2026-10-31.
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Evidence strength
EvidenceHelix's computed view of the study designs behind this topic: how common meta-analyses, randomized trials and reviews are, how recent the literature is, and a plain-language reading. It describes the design mix of the literature. It is not a quality appraisal of any study, and it is not medical advice.