Thaindian News

Mar 29 (THAINDIAN NEWS) The former commissioner of the FDA, (Food and Drug Administration) David Kessler wrote a book entitled “The End of Overeating” which opened a great deal of controversy. He accused food companies of deliberately manipulating the chemical composition is their snack foods and products in order to make them more addictive to people with vulnerable brain chemistries. In his research he showed proof that the reactions of a rat which has been used to a diet of snack foods, and then switched to a healthy diet are much like those of drug withdrawal. The rat’s brain actually experienced the two in very similar ways. His findings were dismissed by the food industry, which ignored them. Their top lobbyist admitted that they ignored the findings on purpose, so as not to draw attention to Kessler’s work, and his discoveries. Kessler stated that food companies should be shamed publicly for marketing unhealthy and addictive foods to children.

It seems that more evidence to support Kessler’s case has been discovered. According to a study which was published on Sunday, Binging on high-calorie foods may be as addictive as cocaine or nicotine, and could cause compulsive eating and obesity. In the study, it was found that when rats over eat high calorie foods, they can over time get to a point where it triggers addiction like responses when the foods are traded for healthy ones. They rats were also willing to hurt themselves to get to the high calorie food.

In overweight rats, scientists found lowered levels of dopamine, which is a brain chemical that is released during many different drug uses, and inducing a “feel good” feeling. When they ate the junk food, the levels went up.

They fed one group of rats a healthy diet. Another group had a healthy diet with access to high calorie foods for one hour each day. The third group of rats were given healthy foods and given junk food (which they had bought at the local supermarket)all day long. They trained all of the rats to expect a minor shock when they saw a light come on. The rats in the third group stopped eating healthy after a while, and began to munch on junk foods all day. They quickly became obese, but that is only part of the story. When the rats who had chosen to eat only junk food all day long did not respond at all to the threat of shock when the light came on. They continued to munch on their high calorie goodies, seeming to prefer shock to having to stop eating. Sounds an awful lot like an addiction to most people!