Maybe you find it hard to walk past a bar of chocolate in a supermarket without throwing yourself on it.
• Read also: These 8 Foods You Should Never Eat
Or maybe you just salivate at the smell of fried food that emanates from fast food restaurants. Tell yourself that you are far from alone!
According to a study conducted by researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Metabolism Research in collaboration with Yale University, foods high in fat and sugar alter our brains, even in small amounts.
“Our measurements of brain activity showed that the brain rewires itself when you eat crisps or other such fatty foods. He subconsciously learns to prefer rewarding foods, explained Marc Tittgemeyer. Because of these changes in the brain, we will always subconsciously prefer foods that are high in fat and sugar. »
To conduct this study, the team fed a small, high-fat, high-sugar pudding every day to a group of volunteers for eight weeks, in addition to their normal diet.
AFP
Next, a control group received a pudding that had the same number of calories, but less fat. The participants’ brain activity was measured before and during the eight-week experiment.
First, the researchers found that volunteers in the high-sugar/fat group did not gain more weight than those in the control group, and neither did their blood sugar or cholesterol levels. However, the scientists believe that their preference for sweet foods will remain following the experiment.
“New connections are made in the brain and they don’t dissolve so quickly. After all, the interest of learning is there. Once you learn something, you don’t forget it so quickly,” added Marc Tittgemeyer.
The full results of the study have been published in the journal Cell Metabolism.
