Addiction To Junk Food

Addiction To Junk Food: More Than Meets The Eye




Posted on: Sunday, April 7th 2013 at 5:00 am

Written By: Eleni Roumeliotou



When it comes to processed food, excessive amounts of sugar and hydrogenated fats
is the rule rather than the exception. It is no secret anymore that
there is a very distinct thread linking the increased consumption of
such foods, coupled with relentless advertising campaigns and the
epidemic proportions of diabetes and obesity in all age groups on a
global scale. In fact, if current trends continue, it is estimated that
by 2030, more than 86% of Americans will be either overweight or obese.
For some people, this picture looks dreadful enough already, but the
truth is that it barely scratches the surface of the problem.

Neurobiology research
has shown that food can cause serious addiction, the kind that addictive
drugs do. Dr Nicole Avena and her colleagues from the department of
Psychiatry, University of Florida, report that the consumption of sugar
not only alters brain function and behavior, but it also elicits the
same type of withdrawal symptoms like opiate drugs do. In other words, sugar affects the opioid receptors
in the brain, which are recognized by natural (endogenous or not)
opioid substances. On the other hand, foods rich in fat seem to affect
the brain in a different way, although they cause withdrawal-type
symptoms as well. Many studies show that there is a unique relationship
between emotional balance and fatty acids.

For example, a study published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation
in 2011 tested the effects of fat consumption in healthy people while
experiencing experimentally induced sad feelings. Within minutes the sad
feelings were significantly alleviated and the subjects reported
improved mood, while MRI scans confirmed the expected brain response.
This study is important because it shows that fat actually does not even
have to be properly digested in order to modify brain functions. The
mere presence of fat in the gut triggers the release of gastrointestinal
hormones, which regulate neurological and emotional responses within
very few minutes.


The above studies prove
that junk food, high in fat and sugar, is so much more than excessive
calories. It truly creates addiction on a biochemical and neurological
level. It would be naive to believe that the richness of junk food in
these specific compounds is an accident. Michael Moss explains in his
incredible book "Salt, Sugar, Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us" that
the amount of secretive research invested by Big Food giants in finding the right combinations of the cheapest and most addictive ingredients for their products, is tremendous.

What neuroscience is
only now starting to understand and elucidate, food companies knew it
all along. And they have capitalized hard on it by selling processed
food especially designed to bypass appetite control and neurological
security valves of any unsuspected victim. Due to the complexity and
interconnectedness of the biological functions in the human body, the
overall impact of processed food on human physiology, health, life
expectancy and quality of life in this generation is still hard to
estimate.

But again the full
extent of this slow, but efficient, genocide cannot be not fully
appreciated if the impact on the future generations is not assessed as
well. Latest research shows that the diet during pregnancy has a
significant impact on the nutritional choices of the offspring. It is
now confirmed that when the expectant mother follows a high-fat diet,
her baby shows a measurable preference for sugar. However, this is not
just a behavioral trait casually passed on to the next generation by
means of mimicking the behavior of adults. On the contrary, as a result
of the maternal diet, the DNA and subsequent expression of genes
encoding opioid and dopamine receptors in the brain of the child is
altered in a manner that promotes addiction.

This is no surprise, since repeated use of certain drugs has been well documented to cause enzymatic DNA modifications (epigenetic changes) which disrupt neuronal
gene programs and support addictive behavior. This scientific fact
explains why the kids of obese mothers are heavier with increased fat
mass and have elevated insulin and glucose levels in their blood in
comparison with control groups. Experiments show that the genetic
disruption induced by maternal junk food consumption during pregnancy
has long-term effects on the child's behavior and neurological
responses.

In a twisted way, the
new generation is genetically pre-programmed to be addicted to junk
food, even before they are born. This perfect self-feeding loop
guarantees long-term profits for the food corporations and chronic
debilitating disease for humans, for generations to come. By designing
and selling addictive, low quality and disease-promoting products, Big
Food has achieved the unthinkable: to create a dedicated army of
health-compromised, addicted fans, whose cognitive, biochemical and even
genetic potential to break free of their addiction is hijacked before
birth.



Source:-

http://www.greenmedinfo.com/blog/addiction-junk-food-more-meets-eye