Encyclopedia of Nutritional Psychology

Orthorexia, though not yet a formally recognized mental health diagnosis, is characterized by an obsessive or pathological preoccupation with "healthy" eating, often involving rigid dietary rules and an extreme focus…

Oxidative stress is an imbalance between the production of harmful reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the body's ability to neutralize them. It can potentially cause cellular damage and contribute to…

A term used in research generally refers to certain foods’ highly stimulating properties (namely fat, sugar, and salt).

The Paleolithic diet is a modern dietary pattern modeled on foods presumed to have been eaten by early humans before the development of agriculture. It emphasizes vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds,…

Paracellular diffusion involves several ions or molecules passing through the specialized tight junctions between the epithelium cells in the gut layer (Riechmann, 2021),.

The parasympathetic nervous system is a division of the autonomic nervous system (ANS), often called the "rest and digest" system. It promotes relaxation, slowing heart rate, constricting pupils, and directing…

Pathobionts are microorganisms that are a part of the human microbiome and usually live as non-harmful symbionts but can cause harm under certain circumstances. These microorganisms are often considered “opportunistic…

A pathogenic organism is an infectious agent that can cause damage to the host.

Pathogens are microorganisms (such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, protozoa, or worms) that cause disease (Akira et al., 2006).

A learning process in which a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a biologically significant stimulus, resulting in a conditioned response to the previously neutral stimulus.