Skip to main content

Lean plate club: Science asks: Is food addictive?

Lean plate club: Science asks: Is food addictive?

Lean plate club: Science asks: Is food addictive?

Research is still scanty, but the evidence that exists "is extremely interesting and provocative."

By Sally Squires, Washington Post


Alcohol, nicotine and cocaine are just a few of the substances known to be addictive. Now some scientists wonder if food should be added to the list.

"Are there certain things in food that act on the brain and set up a classic addictive process, like tolerance, withdrawal and craving?" asks psychologist Kelly Brownell, who organized a recent scientific meeting on food addiction at Yale University. While the research is still scanty, the evidence that exists "is extremely interesting and provocative and suggests to me that something is there," Brownell says.

That's not news to many Lean Plate Club members who e-mailed me recently about their food struggles. Most asked not to be named, reflecting how they feel stigmatized by behaviors they have trouble controlling.

"I feel addicted to food at times," one wrote. "Food is like a drug to me. It can change my emotional state. For many years, I have 'used' food as a feel-good panacea, self-medicating with warm chocolate chip cookies or a pint of Chunky Monkey. I will sit down with a food I like in an upset state of mind and will eat it all immediately, beyond the feeling of fullness. It's like a compulsion to finish the entire thing."

Another member described how "thinking about food is like a pounding obsession -- a hammer beating in my head that is driving no nail. ... I hate feeling full. I'm not in control and I hate letting this demon take over me. I want to stop and nobody has any idea."

Those descriptions certainly sound like the feelings that doctors associate with addiction. But whether they stem from the same physiological changes that occur with drug and alcohol dependency is not yet known. "Is it an addiction to food or an addiction to eating?" asks Susan Yanovski, director of the obesity and eating disorders division at the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. "Or is it another manifestation of a compulsive behavior like gambling or shopping?"

The brain and food

Brain imaging may soon provide answers. At Brookhaven National Laboratory, psychiatrist Dr. Nora Volkow and her colleagues map dopamine receptors on brain cells. This powerful neurotransmitter plays a key role in addiction. Dopamine systems are disrupted by addictive drugs, from alcohol to methamphetamine, which hijack the control of volition and the quest for rewards.

It turns out that food also affects the brain's dopamine systems. When Volkow, who is also director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, compared brain images of methamphetamine users with those of obese people, she found both groups had significantly fewer dopamine receptors than healthy people. Even more interesting: the higher the body mass index, the fewer the dopamine receptors -- opening the door to a better understanding of why it can be so difficult for some people to lose weight and keep it off.

What role dopamine may play in obesity -- and how eating affects it -- is still to be determined. No one knows if the brain changes occurred before or after people became obese, or if they can be reversed with weight loss. Are some people more susceptible to certain popular foods such as sugary, high-fat fare? Might food additives, preservatives and other substances have an effect on dopamine receptors?

"It's a fascinating topic, but I don't think that it's ready for prime time in terms of suggesting intervention or suggesting that this [food addiction] is a real phenomenon," Yanovski says.

Even if food prompts feelings and behaviors in some people that are like addiction, there are likely to be many treatment challenges ahead. "You can be totally abstinent in using drugs or alcohol, but you can't be abstinent with eating," Yanovski notes.

That's why some people who feel that they've been snared by food addictions sometimes try to eliminate the specific foods that seem to trigger their overeating. "My name is Lisa and I am a compulsive eater," wrote one Lean Plate Club member who has eliminated refined, processed foods high in sugar, white flour, artificial sweeteners and food additives from her diet. "I am addicted to food, and for me, to attempt to eat certain foods in moderation is no different than suggesting that a crack addict or alcoholic smoke crack or drink alcohol in moderation. It simply is not possible."

Other Lean Plate Club members view chronic overeating as a symptom of a bigger problem. "Compulsive eating to me is a sign that my soul is hungry for something else," wrote one. "I try to think of it as a sign that I need to change something in my life. When I think of it as a tool for self-knowledge, it becomes a gift and much more manageable."

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Insulin Resistance- cause of ADD, diabetes, narcolepsy, etc etc

Insulin Resistance Insulin Resistance Have you been diagnosed with clinical depression? Heart disease? Type II, or adult, diabetes? Narcolepsy? Are you, or do you think you might be, an alcoholic? Do you gain weight around your middle in spite of faithfully dieting? Are you unable to lose weight? Does your child have ADHD? If you have any one of these symptoms, I wrote this article for you. Believe it or not, the same thing can cause all of the above symptoms. I am not a medical professional. I am not a nutritionist. The conclusions I have drawn from my own experience and observations are not rocket science. A diagnosis of clinical depression is as ordinary as the common cold today. Prescriptions for Prozac, Zoloft, Wellbutrin, etc., are written every day. Genuine clinical depression is a very serious condition caused by serotonin levels in the brain. I am not certain, however, that every diagnosis of depression is the real thing. My guess is that about 10 percent of the people taking ...

Could Narcolepsy be caused by gluten? :: Kitchen Table Hypothesis

Kitchen Table Hypothesis from www.zombieinstitute.net - Heidi's new site It's commonly known that a severe allergy to peanuts can cause death within minutes. What if there were an allergy that were delayed for hours and caused people to fall asleep instead? That is what I believe is happening in people with Narcolepsy. Celiac disease is an allergy to gliadin, a specific gluten protein found in grains such as wheat, barley and rye. In celiac disease the IgA antigliadin antibody is produced after ingestion of gluten. It attacks the gluten, but also mistakenly binds to and creates an immune reaction in the cells of the small intestine causing severe damage. There is another form of gluten intolerance, Dermatitis Herpetiformis, in which the IgA antigliadin bind to proteins in the skin, causing blisters, itching and pain. This can occur without any signs of intestinal damage. Non-celiac gluten sensitivity is a similar autoimmune reaction to gliadin, however it usually involves the...

Blue-blocking Glasses To Improve Sleep And ADHD Symptoms Developed

Blue-blocking Glasses To Improve Sleep And ADHD Symptoms Developed Scientists at John Carroll University, working in its Lighting Innovations Institute, have developed an affordable accessory that appears to reduce the symptoms of ADHD. Their discovery also has also been shown to improve sleep patterns among people who have difficulty falling asleep. The John Carroll researchers have created glasses designed to block blue light, therefore altering a person's circadian rhythm, which leads to improvement in ADHD symptoms and sleep disorders. […] How the Glasses Work The individual puts on the glasses a couple of hours ahead of bedtime, advancing the circadian rhythm. The special glasses block the blue rays that cause a delay in the start of the flow of melatonin, the sleep hormone. Normally, melatonin flow doesn't begin until after the individual goes into darkness. Studies indicate that promoting the earlier release of melatonin results in a marked decline of ADHD symptoms. Bett...