Have you ever wondered why we yearn for the extremely foods that we attempt to avoid when dieting? Or dream there was a way to switch off the craving?
Researchers from The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston have recognized brand-new brain circuits that might serve as a brake on binge consuming and unhealthy food yearning.
In rats who had spent a month eating a low-fat diet plan, researchers successfully hindered the fatty food seeking habits. The findings are currently offered in Behavioral Brain Research.
Craving for foods high in fat this includes many junk foods is an important part of obesity and binge eating, said Jonathan Hommel, assistant professor in the department of pharmacology and toxicology.
When trying to lose weight people often strive to avoid fatty foods, which ironically increases motivation and craving for these foods and can lead to overeating. Even worse, the longer someone abstains from fatty foods, the greater the cravings.
Numerous behavioral studies have demonstrated that rejecting specific foods, like being on a diet, triggers increased yearning and motivation for that food. Nevertheless, the brain systems that cause this type of overeating are not known. To this end, the UTMB researchers sought to find out how the brain drives this possibly damaging behavior.
Utilizing rats that had been placed on a 30-day low-fat diet, the UTMB team trained them to work for fatty treats by pushing a lever. To measure craving and motivation, the scientists kept increasing how many times the rats required to press the lever in order to receive the treat until the rat gave up attempting.
Next, half of the rats underwent a surgical procedure that obstructed the effects of a brain chemical called neuromedin U receptor 2 within an area of the brain that regulates food intake. The other half of the rats did not receive this treatment.
After surgical healing, the scientists found that the rats who had been dealt with did not work nearly as difficult for fatty treats as their unaltered equivalents did.
While our findings are only the first step in a long process from the scientific lab to the doctors office, we are planning to develop new drugs to help curb those cravings, said Hommel. Although it may be years before the drug is ready, our research highlights some important features of food craving that may help you set realistic New Years resolutions.
Originally posted here:
Here is why you crave junk food when your on a diet - Drew Reports News
