Questioning whether drug addiction and compulsive overeating are triggered by similar molecular mechanisms, Paul Kinny and others at the Scripps Research Institute in Florida devised a study to test this theory. Their research showed that rats fed on foods high in fat became so addicted to it that they ignored painful electric shocks in order to continue eating.

Apparently, too much fatty foods raises the threshold for satiety causing rats to consume more foods than if fed normal rat food. By raising the threshold for feeling satisfied after eating, those rats who had free or limited access to fatty foods engaged in compulsive eating and were subsequently obese.

According to the press release from Scripps on this 3 year study, “As these pleasure centers in the brain become less and less responsive, rats quickly develop compulsive overeating habits, consuming larger quantities of high-calorie, high-fat foods until they become obese. The very same changes occur in the brains of rats that over-consume cocaine or heroin…”

One young, extremely obese patient of mine has told me she always feels hungry. Her overeating, if understood as an inability of her brain to respond normally to feelings of fullness, becomes a problem much greater than simply a personal failing on her part – rather it becomes a chemical imbalance over which she may have very limited control.

What makes food addictions so incredibly difficult to deal with is that unlike other addictions, one simply can’t avoid the substance as in say, alcohol or cocaine or tobacco. Food addicts still need food and so they are constantly reminded about their addiction.

Continued research into the causes of obesity will help further our understanding of addictions and their treatments.

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