David A. Kessler M.D., commissioner for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration from 1990 to 1997, wrote “The End to Overeating” in an attempt to understand what drives people to overeat. The science of overeating points to the combination of sugar and fat which increases our cravings “synergistically” according to research done on rats.

Sugar alone stimulates dopamine receptor sites in the brain, the same neurotransmitter that gets stimulated with cocaine or amphetamines. Combining fat to the mixture (like adding peanut butter cups to ice cream) increases the cravings and stimulates the brain. Kessler states that the food industry has honed taste to a science combining just the right amount of sugar, fat and salt (another brain teaser) to make food irresistible.

You can read an interview with David A. Kessler in this month’s issue of Nutrition Action Health Letter. Unfortunately, you can’t sample any of the articles without subscribing but if you can swing it, it’s well worth the $20 for the year. You can also read about David A. Kessler’s research on food cravings in this great article published in The Washington Post.