Ever wondered why that single square of chocolate after dinner is never enough? Why it’s impossible not to consume the whole slab, even to the point of nausea? Scientists no longer blame the tendency to binge on high-fat, high-sugar foods on sheer greed or lack of self-control. Rather, the urge to finish off the Pringles is now thought to be due to hedonic hunger - a powerful physiological response over which we have little control. “People shouldn’t feel guilty for not being able to resist certain foods,” says Zoe Griffiths, a dietitian and head of public health at Weight Watchers UK. “It’s not a question of not being strong enough.” Experts believe there are two drivers behind what and how much we eat. The first, the homeostatic system, regulates appetite according to the body’s need for energy. Homeostasis is controlled by communication between the brain and the digestive system: hence when we are in an energy deficit we get signals such as shakiness (caused by low blood-sugar levels), stomach rumbles and hunger pangs. But the second driver, hedonic hunger, can override the former. It is defined as a physiological response, involving the brain’s “reward centres” to smelling, seeing and thinking about certain foods. The result is that we eat not according to energy needs, but purely for pleasure. Read more http://www.calgaryherald.com/health/help finishing Pringles/8889252/story.html
