Obesity represents an important risk factor contributing to the global burden of disease. The current obesogenic environment with easy access to calorie-dense foods is fueling this obesity epidemic. However, how these foods contribute to the progression of feeding behavior changes that lead to overeating is not well understood and needs systematic assessment. Using novel automated methods for the high-throughput screening of behavior, we here examine mice meal pattern upon long-term exposure to a free-choice chocolate-mixture diet and a high-fat diet with face validity for a rapid development of obesity induced by unhealthy food regularly consumed in our societies. We identified rapid diet-specific behavioral changes after exposure to those high-caloric diets. Mice fed with high-fat chow, showed long-lasting meal pattern disturbances, which initiate with a stable loss of circadian feeding rhythmicity. Mice receiving a chocolate-mixture showed qualitatively similar changes, though less marked, consisting in a transient disruption of the feeding behavior and the circadian feeding rhytmicity. Strikingly, compulsive-like eating behavior is triggered immediately after exposure to both high-fat food and chocolate-mixture diet, well before any changes in body weight could be observed. We propose these changes as behavioral biomarkers of prodromal states of obesity that could allow early intervention.

The laboratory of M.D. is supported by DIUE de la Generalitat de Catalunya (Grups consolidats SGR 2014/1125). This work was supported by Fondation Jérôme Lejeune (Paris, France), MINECO (SAF2013‐49129‐C2‐1‐R; SAF2016‐79956‐R), CDTI ('Smartfoods') and EU (Era Net Neuron PCIN‐2013‐060) and the Catalan foundation 'La Marató de TV3' (#2016/20‐30). The CRG is a Center of Excellence Severo Ochoa SEV‐2012‐0208. The CIBER of Rare Diseases is an initiative of the ISCIII. The laboratory of C.N. acknowledge the funding from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Finance (MINECO), grant number BFU2011‐28575. J.E. received the FI grant from Agència de Gestió d'Ajuts Universitaris i de Recerca (AGAUR) de la Generalitat de Catalunya. The laboratory of R.M. was supported by the DG Research of the European Commission FP7 (#HEALTH‐F2 2013‐602891 and PHECOMP #LHSM‐CT‐2007‐037669), the Spanish 'RETICS‐Instituto de Salud Carlos III' (#RD16/0017/0020), the Spanish 'Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad' (#SAF‐2014‐59648P), the 'Plan nacional sobre drogas' (#PNSD‐2013‐5068), the Catalan Government 'AGAUR‐Generalitat de Catalunya' (#2014‐SGR‐1547) and the Catalan foundation 'La Marató de TV3' (#2016/20‐30).