Revealed: why some foods are addictive

[depakid]

Source: Sydney Morning Herald

http://www.smh.com.au/ffximage/2009/01/12/nicolewigan_wideweb__470x313,0.jpg
Nicole Wigan, left, enjoys a holiday treat of fish and chips at La Perouse yesterday. She said she has to watch her son Jack (wearing red rashie), who loves junk food.
------------------

CORNFLAKES, biscuits and soft drinks may be as addictive as cigarettes and are in danger of advertising bans, strict regulations, high taxes and health warning labels, scientists say. These and other heavily processed foods with a high glycaemic index (GI) trigger an addictive sugar rush that can be hard to resist and leads to obesity.

New Zealand scientists reviewed evidence showing compulsive food consumption has similar underlying brain mechanisms that result in drug dependence, and argue that heavily processed carbohydrates have the most potential to cause addiction.

Lead researcher Simon Thornley, from Auckland Regional Public Health Service, said foods with a high GI caused blood-sugar levels to spike suddenly, and this sugar rush stimulates the same areas of the brain associated with addiction to nicotine and other drugs. Low-GI foods produce gradual rises in blood sugar and insulin levels, and a feeling of contentment and satiety.He said the theory, if proven, had important public health implications....

...This is the first time GI has been implicated as the predictor of the addictive potential of foods. Dr Thornley said evidence showed people who binged on high-carb foods experienced symptoms of addiction - loss of control, a compulsion to keep taking higher amounts to get the same buzz - and suffered withdrawal if they went cold turkey. And like those addicted to cocaine and alcohol, people with a higher body mass index had fewer brain pleasure receptors.



Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/news/lifeandstyle/lifematters/revealed-why-some-foods-are-addictive/2009/01/12/1231608617039.html

[Locrian]

1. thanks

Good article. I've been saying this for a long time. There is a theory somewhere where it was partly carb addiction that led to farming etc vs hunter gathering lifestyle.

[alfredo]

2. Some people think curries are addictive, but that could be an emotional

addiction, not a physical addiction.

[AtheistCrusader]

7. Put some yellow curry on a piece of cardboard, and I'll eat it.

[Theres-a]

15. I could eat a barn full of curried chickens. nt

[alfredo]

28. A touch of lemon juice works wonders.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

54. If you are ever in Bellevue, Wa. go to

Cafe Ori and order their yellow curry. Hong Kong comfort food at it's best!

[alfredo]

62. Curried potatoes or chicken curry is part of my personal recipe book.

We have a couple Indian restaurants in town, I will have to check them out.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

22. It's especially bad...

When you speedball that curry with Lime Pickle. Oh lord, I become a drooling mess.

[alfredo]

24. Curried popcorn? I'm a lost cause.

[Dorian Gray]

39. I've heard

(Though I have no scientific links to prove it) that spicy food containing capsaicin can result in an euphoric feeling when eaten, resulting in an addictive quality. (Which may explain why I love getting Spicy Thai Green Curry!)

[alfredo]

42. It speeds up the metabolism, and stimulates endorphins. Endorphins

are what cause the runner's high. I was addicted to my endorphins for many years. I pushed myself for that high to the point where I wore out my body.

I remember one night at a Thai restaurant the food was very hot and tasty. I found myself so light headed when I left I couldn't get the key into the ignition.

[Dorian Gray]

45. That's funny

(the lightheadedness after eating Thai, not the wearing out your body.)

I see a trainer once a week, and she told me that very thing today about getting endorphin highs. I guess I haven't pushed myself enough because I still hate working out. LOL. (Though I feel great afterwards!)

I do love spicy food. I add chile or crushed red peppers (or aleppo pepper) into almost every single meal!

[alfredo]

48. I used to experience it when I was a mail carrier. I'd walk ten miles a day.

The first mile or so may not be much fun, but after a bit, I start feeling it. It's really a nice free and legal drug.

[Bake]

41. Curry? Barf! I'd rather eat dog turds.

Different strokes, as they say.

:hi:

Bake

[alfredo]

43. Try Berbere

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berbere

[JCMach1]

59. Masala and peppers can produce similar effects on the brain

as does caffeine, chocolate, cheeses!!!

Lots of things

[alfredo]

63. Beer makes me silly.

[BeatleBoot]

3. Corn, Refined Flour and Sugar Kills

And throw alcohol in there too. It's sugar.

It kills.


Everything in moderation.

[Kittycat]

4. I've soured quite a bit on corn myself - but the Meat end concerns me.

Most meat that enters the market originated from a corn fed animal. And again, the monsanto twist takes another turn.

[ananda]

12. High fructose corn syrup too..

.. very bad for you.

[BeatleBoot]

19. It is the Scourge of Our Nation

IMHO

Folks on here laugh at me when I post, "What do you expect from a country jacked up on High Fructose Corn Syrup."

I understand why they laugh. It sounds like an old man yelling for kids to get off of the lawn.

But, most on here do not understand the impact sugar has on the body.

High fructose corn syrup is a drug.

Go drink a Gatorade to re-hydrate. Then look at the ingredients. You'll never touch it again.

Glass of water for me.

[valerief]

21. I've been trying to eat a HFCS-free diet. I occasionally treat myself with

sugar in coffee and sugar-sweetened ice cream, but I dodge food I know has HFCS. It's even in sliced bread, so I buy only organic bread that doesn't list HFCS.

[alfredo]

29. Doing away with soda and fast food is a big step.

Grocery store sushi has HFCS.

[Occulus]

30. Do you know, though, I think some manufacturers are starting to get it

I went out to get some corn chips and salsa a while back, and it occurred to me to check the ingredients on them.

Believe it or not, I looked at several (four or five, I think) major brands of salsa, and found zero preservatives (in fact, a decided lack of anything but vegetables) in all but one. Even HFCS was absent, and they put that in damn near everything any more, even foods- like, say, salsa- that don't need it at all in the first place.

To say I was completely floored by that is an understatement.

[alfredo]

38. Usually sugar is put in tomato products to cut any hint our sourness.

[valerief]

66. Yeah, but sugar isn't as bad as HFCS. Actually I like stevia on a lot of foods. nt

[alfredo]

70. Never tried Stevia. I use plain old sugar and honey.

[Indiana_Dem]

33. I've been trying to stay away from HFCS and I can't believe all the things they put it in!

Just today I've been reading online about raw foods. I started looking into it when I saw some girl on my Veria channel on TV make some raw cookies. They were raw oatmeal cookies with coconut and some raisins(some other ingredients I can't remember). They didn't look too bad. The girl was "baking" them by putting them in a dehydrator. So I'm thinking about trying to focus on raw foods. I've even wondered about juicing some things.

[Lethe]

5. this is apparent to anyone who has ditched a high-carb lifestyle

the first two weeks are absolute hell.

What you typically recognize as hunger is just carb craving.

Low carb is not a "fad" diet, nor has it ever been. Grains were first consumed by humans starting around 10,000 years ago, compared with 50 million years of human evolution without any grains.

[Lex]

8. "What you typically recognize as hunger is just carb craving."

I agree. 2 weeks off sugar, white pasta, and other highly refined carbs and the 'false' hungries are pretty much gone.

[meow2u3]

44. Carb craving?! That's freakin' withdrawal pangs

n/t

[Abq_Sarah]

35. "induction flu"

Was worse that quitting cigarettes. Not just the physical cravings but the way your mind tries to play tricks on you and tell you it's okay to eat that one piece of toast or bite of cake.

After 7 years of low carb, no colds, not one sick day, indigestion gone and incredible lipid profiles, I'll never go back to a so-called normal diet again. Another added benefit: I got to fire my periodontist. No more gum disease!

This is an issue I would love to see President Obama's surgeon general tackle.

[KamaAina]

53. Not gonna happen

This is an issue I would love to see President Obama's surgeon general tackle.

at least not if it's Gupta. Unless, that is, he's in bed with meat producers like he is with Big Pharma. :eyes:

[Hawkowl]

46. Almost

Agriculture started 10,000 years ago and hence cultivated grains. Humans have always been ominvores and just got their grains through gathering wild grains prior to organized farming.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

71. True, and after two weeks, any sweet foods you eat taste sickeningly sweet

I need to detox again, I think.

[eridani]

6. Fawking stupid. Addiction actually does have a real medical meaning

If I'm addicted to food, I'll just have to confess to being a multiple substance abuser. I'm addicted to water and oxygen as well.

[Lethe]

10. have you ever felt compelled to overdose on water or oxygen?

or consume either of those excessively?

The majority of the population compulsively eats manufactured carbohydrates like heroin addicts.

[eridani]

27. Withdrawal symptoms from food will kill you.

Heroin addiction in no way resembles overeating.

[iamjoy]

11. You Miss The Point

There is a difference between needing food as sustenance and a craving.

Cravings are often for things like chocolate and other sweets, potato chips and salty and/or fried foods. These things are high in calories and fat, but low in nutrition.

[eridani]

26. Craving is a reasonable word to describe the phenomenon

"Addiction" is not.

[asthmaticeog]

14. Yes, I think someone's lazily used the word "addiction" to mean "habituation," here. nt

[wickerwoman]

52. I'd suggest spending a few years building up a serious carb habit...

a few full sugar sodas a day, a few candy bars, a bag of potato chips after dinner, pasta for lunch on top of an otherwise decent diet and then try going on a low-carb diet for two weeks. It's not "habituation" or "cravings". I had cold sweats that lasted for hours, my foot twitched compulsively so I couldn't sleep for five days, I was irritable and irrational, confused, dizzy, lethargic, exhausted, strung out. I had to time my high-GI foods detox to a national holiday because I was really incapacitated by the effort.

The good news was that after a few months of low-carb, I had absolutely no desire to touch high carb/high GI foods again and when I did I felt instantly miserable. Lost seventy pounds and kept it off for years. It totally redefined what I understood as hunger and how cycles of appetite work.

You don't die from nicotine detox but that doesn't mean it's not addictive.

[eridani]

58. Going low carb made me incapable of vigorous physical activity n/t

[Binka]

60. Are You Over Weight?

Just curious. I run 50+ miles a week and a low carb diet works well for me.

[eridani]

64. Yes--doesn't take too much to go aerobic

I'd never consider running--I know too many people who have destroyed their feet and knees that way. Low carb makes it impossible for me to bike more than 15 miles.

[wickerwoman]

65. Well... you have to find the level of carb intake that's appropriate for your activity level.

I walk about 90 minutes a day and swim several hours a week and get by fine on around 160-200g of carbs a day. Eat more carbs if you exercise more.

My point is that drastically reducing my carb intake created a state of withdrawal similar to quitting cigarettes. To say that people simply crave carbs (and are therefore weak-willed because they can't resist the craving) is inaccurate. My body's conversation when I ate a lot of carbs was not "Go on and have some scones dear" "Oh, I really shouldn't" "Go on" "Well, if you insist." It was more like "Eat something fucking now or I'm dropping you down this staircase."

I've had "cravings" and I've been through "withdrawal" and going from a high GI diet to a low GI diet (and quitting caffeine the year before) was withdrawal. High GI diets and caffeine, in my experience, are addictive.

[eridani]

68. I've been avoiding high glycemic index foods for about 20 years

Whole grains don't count, but are very helpful in keeping me going.

[Mike 03]

9. Certainly this entire Glycemic Index issue is important in terms of obesity,

but I am not sure that "addiction" really qualifies as a description of this phenomenon.

But I'm interested in what others think of this. Some fruits and vegetables are considerably high on the GI. Are they part of a conspiracy to make people fat?

[BadgerKid]

18. Glycemic Load is probably a better indicator. n/t

[slackmaster]

13. It doesn't explain my addiction to sashimi

Must have sashimi.

[Psephos]

16. Addiction is when you keep doing something even though you don't want to

Which is why you aren't addicted to sashimi.

(lol, I know your post was tongue in cheek)

:)

[Bette Noir]

32. No, it was tuna in cheek.

[Psephos]

36. groan lol n/t

[Mari333]

17. I can think of a lot worse things to be addicted to

and I am not giving up bagels or fettucine alfredo no matter what.
I would rather be addicted to them, then be addicted to worrying about what I am addicted to. :)

[BreweryYardRat]

61. Bagels are far from the worst choice you could be making.

Slap some peanut butter on two bagels, and you'll be pleasantly full for quite a while. I was doing that over the past summer, combined with semi-regular swimming, and lost 10 pounds.

[John Kerry VonErich]

20. To each their own.

IMHO, it's just junk science.

[Botany]

23. Fuck it I like Coke

[Vinnie From Indy]

25. Chapstick is addictive

Ask a chapstick user if they always carry it and at least half will never go anywhere without it. Use Chapstick for a few months and they own you for life.

[Mojorabbit]

31. I have a friend like that

Always has a chapstick and gets ancy when she can't find it when we are out.

[originalpckelly]

34. First they came for the booze, then they came for cigarettes, now they want sugar?

What will they come for next, sex?

"Congress has introduced a new proposal to tax all sexual acts resulting in an orgasm. The new proposal, called ORGASM Act, which is short for Oversight, Regulation, And Sex Management Act of 2009, will be on the floor of the House after leaving committee earlier this week. Passage of the ORGASM Act is expected to occur faster than anticipated."

[AngryAmish]

37. Kettle's Spicy Thai Chips

I allow myself three bags a year. Otherwise, I'll be 400 lbs.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

47. I have never seen them in NJ.

And I am moved to say here: Thank ghod. I am such a fool for potato chips it's pathetic.

[Habibi]

51. Oh, god, me too.

I only eat potatoes at holiday meals and the very occasional dinner out for a burger. I would eat chips every day if I could.

[Scurrilous]

49. For me it's Snyders Jalapeno Pretzel Pieces.

And I'm not alone (Amazon review):

I'm addicted, May 4, 2008

By C. Liebendorfer (Seattle, WA United States)

I am hopelessly addicted to these jalapeño pieces. Someone help me. I need some kind of medication to wean me off of them.

http://www.amazon.com/review/product/B000G7TBLQ

[gauguin57]

40. Does anyone here use agave nectar as a sweetener? And, if so, how do you use it?

I bought a package at the health-food store, and I'm trying to work up the courage to try it. I have got to kick all processed and artificial sweeteners. I do use honey already, but I'm trying to expand my horizons.

It's supposed to have a low glycemic index, compared with other sweeteners on the market.

And what of stevia ... just got some sort of approval from the FDA ... anyone use that?

[Pastiche423]

50. Don't know about nectar

but I bought four bottles of Stevia about six months ago. I still have 3 7/8's of it left. I can't stand the taste and after-taste.

I could be using it incorrectly, though.

[firehorse]

57. agave

I use it all the time instead of sugar. You can make green blended drinks, and for a dessert add a date or agave. Cacao powder in nut milk with agave is a good thing for chocolate cravings. It's just as sweet as sugar.

[Abq_Sarah]

67. Agave

Is both processed and refined. It's 90% fructose, which is higher than HFCS. Agave has a low glycemic index because it is metabolized by the liver. Some things you might want to consider...... Agave will elevate your triglycerides. Excess fructose consumption is linked to fatty liver syndrome, insulin resistance and obesity.

Personally, I try to keep my fructose consumption as low as possible.

[carlyhippy]

55. Yoplait yogurt is addictive

Carly

[bitchkitty]

56. I'll never give up candy.

GI or not, a piece of chocolate can bring comfort and joy to an otherwise dull or depressing moment.

EVERYTHING is bad for you, if you consume it in excess. I don't think the occasional Happy Meal is going to kill your child, (although you'd be better off making that meal at home with real white meat chicken instead of the pressed and formed crap they use)

I remember when sugar would kill you. When butter would kill you. Everything was going to kill you, so people started eating things with whole wheat and artificial sweeteners. And guess what? America is just as fat as she ever was!

My diet secret: I eat when I'm hungry. When I'm not hungry I stop. I'm the skinniest one in my family, and I don't drink Diet Coke or eat those awful 100-calorie a pack snacks. i eat what I want, when I want, and try to fit in a little nutrition here and there.

[pink-o]

69. The carbs I love and will NEVER give up:

Pineapple
Strawberries
Peaches
Mangoes
Papaya
Blueberries
Raspberries
Bosc Pears
Bananas

Broccoli
Spinach
Tomatoes
Avocados (although they have a lot of fat too)
Peppers
Cucumbers
Eggplant

You see, because ALL fruits and veg are classified as carbohydrates. And they're loaded with vitamins and essential anti-oxidants.

There's a huge dif between bad and good carbs, and it's the processed, chemicalized ones we need to eat sparingly. I think there's nothing wrong with eating some processed foods some of the time, but if you start craving the processed stuff, it's time to give it up.

I wouldn't be surprised if in a few years we find out the manufacturers have been putting addictive chemicals in fast food and grocery store box food. I used to have mad cravings for salty, crunchy stuff like potato chips and pretzels, so I know that carb addiction is a real thing. I no longer eat any of that stuff, but I still eat chocolate, ice cream and cheesecake sometimes--because I can walk away from it and not want to finish the whole thing. Processed carbs are a ticking time bomb for me, whereas sweets do it for other people.