Subscribe to get Updates
Healthy Legacy
  • Home
  • Mind Memory Focus
  • Exercise & Fitness
  • Longevity & Anti Aging
  • Nutrition & Supplements
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Mind Memory Focus
  • Exercise & Fitness
  • Longevity & Anti Aging
  • Nutrition & Supplements
No Result
View All Result
Healthy Legacy
No Result
View All Result

Why is it so difficult to say no to that piece of cake?

admin by admin
September 9, 2020
in Exercise & Fitness
0
Why is it so difficult to say no to that piece of cake?

Using rats, researchers have discovered that a specific circuit in the brain seems to drive impulsive eating. Could this lead to a therapy for people who are dealing with the adverse effects of overeating?

two people eating a piece of cakeShare on Pinterest
New research helps explain why delicious food is sometimes so hard to resist.

Why is it that, despite our best intentions, we impulsively devour that tub of ice cream or bag of popcorn?

The urge to eat impulsively is associated with binge eating and obesity — a state of health that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) describe as “common, serious, and costly.”

Back in 2008, the CDC estimate, the annual medical cost of obesity to the United States was $147 billion.

In 2015–2016, the organization reports, 39.8% of adults in the U.S. had obesity. This condition increases the risk of several health problems, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and certain cancers.

But what underlying mechanism is behind overeating, and could identifying it eventually help people who are experiencing this health issue?

Now, a study appearing in Nature Communications has identified a specific circuit in the brain that may affect our ability to resist temptation.

Impulsivity, or doing something without considering the possible consequences, not only affects the ability to turn down food when sated — it is also a common thread linking issues such as excessive gambling and drug addiction.

While nothing is wrong with impulsivity per se, the new study’s authors note, it can lead to undesired consequences.

So, the team set out to understand what happens in the brain to prompt impulsive behavior, in the hope that their findings might lead to novel therapies for people who battle related disorders.

Researchers trained rats to receive a “delicious, high-fat, high-sugar” pellet by pressing a lever.

The rats had to wait 20 seconds before pressing the lever again. If they were quicker than this, they had to wait an additional 20 seconds.

Then researchers then introduced an injection of melanin-concentrating hormone (MCH). This is a transmitter produced in the hypothalamus at the base of the brain, and previous research has shown it to play a role in impulsive behavior.

Using an advanced technique, the team activated an MCH neural pathway from the hypothalamus to the hippocampus, which is part of the brain linked to learning and memory.

“There’s underlying physiology in your brain that is regulating your capacity to say no to impulsive eating,” says Emily Noble, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Foods and Nutrition at the University of Georgia, in Athens.

“In experimental models, you can activate that circuitry and get a specific behavioral response.”

The researchers found that after the activation of the neural pathway, the rats pressed the lever more frequently, even though this would delay the delivery of the sugary pellet by 20 seconds — a less efficient means of getting a reward.

While previous research has shown that MCH levels in the brain affect food intake, this is the first study to demonstrate the role of the hormone in impulsive behavior, the authors report.

“We found that when we activate the cells in the brain that produce MCH, animals become more impulsive in their behavior around food,” says Noble.

The results suggest that the MCH did not affect the rats’ enjoyment of the food or how hard they were prepared to work for it, but it did impact their ability to resist trying to get a pellet, even though they had learned that pressing the lever more frequently would cause further delays.

“Activating this specific pathway of MCH neurons increased impulsive behavior without affecting normal eating for caloric need or motivation to consume delicious food,” Noble explains.

“Understanding that this circuit, which selectively affects food impulsivity, exists opens the door to the possibility that, one day, we might be able to develop therapeutics for overeating that help people stick to a diet without reducing normal appetite or making delicious foods less delicious.”

Emily Noble, Ph.D.

Source: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/327377.php

Tags: Obesity / Weight Loss / Fitness
Advertisement Banner
Previous Post

What is the link between depression and anxiety?

Next Post

Dementia: Obesity, but not diet or inactivity, raises risk

admin

admin

Next Post
Dementia: Obesity, but not diet or inactivity, raises risk

Dementia: Obesity, but not diet or inactivity, raises risk

Recommended

image of foods that are considered healthy, but they aren't

7 Foods That Are Considered Healthy, But They Aren’t

7 months ago
What are the benefits of hot yoga?

What are the benefits of hot yoga?

1 year ago

Don't Miss

What Are the Benefits of Eating Cantaloupe? 10 Benefits

What Are the Benefits of Eating Cantaloupe? 10 Benefits

January 22, 2021
How Would You Know If a Person Has Scurvy?

How Would You Know If a Person Has Scurvy?

January 22, 2021
AHA News: Trendy Microgreens Offer Flavor You Can Grow at Home

AHA News: Trendy Microgreens Offer Flavor You Can Grow at Home

January 13, 2021
AHA News: To Battle Food Inequity, a Nonprofit Helps Neighbors Eat Healthy

AHA News: To Battle Food Inequity, a Nonprofit Helps Neighbors Eat Healthy

January 7, 2021
Healthy Legacy

Follow us

Recent News

What Are the Benefits of Eating Cantaloupe? 10 Benefits

What Are the Benefits of Eating Cantaloupe? 10 Benefits

January 22, 2021
How Would You Know If a Person Has Scurvy?

How Would You Know If a Person Has Scurvy?

January 22, 2021

Categories

  • Beauty
  • disease
  • Exercise & Fitness
  • immunity
  • Longevity & Anti Aging
  • Mind Memory Focus
  • Nature
  • Nutrition & Supplements
  • Seniors
  • Spices
  • Uncategorized

Tags

Acid Reflux / GERD ADHD / ADD Alcohol / Addiction / Illegal Drugs Alzheimer's / Dementia Anxiety / Stress Bipolar Cancer / Oncology Cardiovascular / Cardiology Cholesterol Complementary Medicine / Alternative Medicine COPD Dentistry Depression Dermatology Diabetes Diabetes Type 2 Eating Disorders Eye Health / Blindness GastroIntestinal / Gastroenterology Heart Disease Immune System / Vaccines Men's Health Mental Health Multiple Sclerosis Neurology / Neuroscience Nutrition / Diet Obesity / Weight Loss / Fitness Osteoarthritis Osteoporosis Parkinson's Disease Pharmacy / Pharmacist Psychology / Psychiatry Respiratory Rheumatoid Arthritis Schizophrenia Seniors / Aging Sexual Health / STDs Sleep / Sleep Disorders / Insomnia Sports Medicine / Fitness Stroke Urinary Tract Infection Urology / Nephrology Vegan / Vegetarian Veterinary Women's Health / Gynecology
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact

© 2018 Healthy Legacy

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Mind Memory Focus
  • Exercise & Fitness
  • Longevity & Anti Aging
  • Nutrition & Supplements

© 2018 Healthy Legacy