%0 Journal Article %T Interaction between repeated restraint stress and concomitant midazolam administration on sweet food ingestion in rats %A Silveira %A P.P. %A Xavier %A M.H. %A Souza %A F.H. %A Manoli %A L.P. %A Rosat %A R.M. %A Ferreira %A M.B.C. %A Dalmaz %A C. %J Brazilian Journal of Medical and Biological Research %D 2000 %I Associa??o Brasileira de Divulga??o Cient¨ªfica %R 10.1590/S0100-879X2000001100013 %X emotional changes can influence feeding behavior. previous studies have shown that chronically stressed animals present increased ingestion of sweet food, an effect reversed by a single dose of diazepam administered before testing the animals. the aim of the present study was to evaluate the response of animals chronically treated with midazolam and/or submitted to repeated restraint stress upon the ingestion of sweet food. male adult wistar rats were divided into two groups: controls and exposed to restraint 1 h/day, 5 days/week for 40 days. both groups were subdivided into two other groups treated or not with midazolam (0.06 mg/ml in their drinking water during the 40-day treatment). the animals were placed in a lighted area in the presence of 10 pellets of sweet food (froot loops£¿). the number of ingested pellets was measured during a period of 3 min, in the presence or absence of fasting. the group chronically treated with midazolam alone presented increased ingestion when compared to control animals (control group: 2.0 ¡À 0.44 pellets and midazolam group: 3.60 ¡À 0.57 pellets). the group submitted to restraint stress presented an increased ingestion compared to controls (control group: 2.0 ¡À 0.44 pellets and stressed group: 4.18 ¡À 0.58 pellets). chronically administered midazolam reduced the ingestion in stressed animals (stressed/water group: 4.18 ¡À 0.58 pellets; stressed/midazolam group: 3.2 ¡À 0.49 pellets). thus, repeated stress increases appetite for sweet food independently of hunger and chronic administration of midazolam can decrease this behavioral effect. %K feeding behavior %K chronic stress %K benzodiazepines %K midazolam %K sweet taste %K rats. %U http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_abstract&pid=S0100-879X2000001100013&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en