Work published in the journal Nutrition & Diabetes suggest that we can all reverse the addictive power of the junk food while increasing our preference for healthy foods. This addiction to fatty and sweet foods is not present from birth, it develops in response to the repeated consumption of these foods.
Food rehabilitation reshapes the brain
“”You don’t start your life by worshiping fries and hating, for example, complete pasta“, said Susan B. Roberts, main author of the study and professor at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy from Tufts University (Boston). The authors of this study sought to know if it was possible to reverse the unhealthy food addiction circuits, once they were well installed in the brain. For this, they studied the reward system of 13 women and men Overweight and obese. Among them, 8 participated in a new weight loss program designed by researchers from Toft University and 5 were part of a control group not registered on the program.
Participants of the two groups were subjected to medical imaging examinations by magnetic resonance (MRI) of the brain at the end of a six -month period. Among the participants in the weight loss program, these examinations revealed changes in the areas of the brain reward center associated with learning and addiction. Concretely, after six months of food rehabilitation, these areas had increased sensitivity to healthy and low -calorie foods. This means that people were now more attracted to healthy foods and enjoyed eating them more than before. MRIs have also shown a reduced sensitivity of the brain to unhealthy and calorie foods.
A more effective solution than surgery for lasting weight control
“”The weight loss program is specifically designed to modify the reaction of individuals to different foods, and our study shows that participants have manifested an increased desire for healthier foods and less preference for unhealthy foods. These combined effects are probably essential to lasting weight control “said Sai Krupa Das, co-author of the study. According to the researchers, this study is the first to show by images that a reversal of unhealthy food addiction circuits was possible. They hypothesize that several aspects of the weight loss program have played an important role, including education for behavioral change and proposals from menus rich in fiber and low glycemic index.
“”Although other studies have shown that surgical interventions such as gastric puncture can decrease general food pleasure, this is not very satisfactory because it decreases general food pleasure instead of making healthier food attractive attractive“said Thilo Deckersbach, principal author of the study.
These works highlight the importance of nutritional rehabilitation in sustainable weight loss. Its effects on the brain, observed thanks to MRI, are very real.
You will understand, to lose weight in a lasting way, you must re -educate your brain by more often offering it healthy and low -calorie foods. Over time, you will have much less desire for fatty and sweet foods and take more pleasure in eating healthy.