Hunger in humans induced by 2-deoxy-D-glucose: glucoprivic control of taste preference and food intake.

Intracellular glucopenia induced by 2-deoxy-D-glucose (2DG) administration in man produces increased hunger ratings and magnitude estimates of pleasantness for sucrose solutions. Augmented food intake substantiates these changes in affective behavior and relieves experimentally induced hunger. Intracellular glucopenia activates counterregulatory mechanisms to raise plasma glucose concentrations. Inducing hunger experimentally with 2DG provides a useful method for studying appetitive behavior in humans. The neurohumoral control of pituitary hormone release and other hypothalamic functions may be examined after 2DG infusion.