Are You High on Food?

Are the foods you have the most difficulty staying away from loaded with combinations of fat, sugar and salt? If so, then you may be "high" on what you're eating and well on your way to addiction.
In his book, "The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite," former FDA chief Dr. David Kessler writes that numerous brain studies have revealed that some people really do have a harder time resisting certain foods. According to Kessler, it's because they stimulate the brain's pleasure pathways while increasing the production of "feel good chemicals."
Indeed, one class of "feel good chemicals" in particular, opioids, has been linked to intense cravings and compulsive overeating of greasy, sweet and salty foods. When eaten, these foods get converted into opioid-based substances in our body that not only make us feel good or get us "high," but keep us coming back for more. Furthermore, it appears that the millions of people who compulsively overeat these sorts of fast, easy, convenient and/or junk food choices experience long-term changes in their brain chemistry similar to those who become addicted to drugs like cocaine, morphine and heroin.
In one study conducted on the subject, rats that were fed a diet containing 25 percent sugar became extremely agitated and anxious when the sugar was removed, displaying symptoms similar to people going through drug withdrawals, such as the shakes and chattering teeth. Amazingly, when given the choice, 94 percent of the rats in the study preferred sugar to cocaine. Even rats who had been previously addicted to cocaine quickly switched to sugar once given the choice between the two, leaving little room for doubt that sugar is one of the most addictive substances known to mankind.
In another study, scientists stimulated rats' brains with a synthetic version of opioids and the rats began to eat up to six times their normal intake of fat. In addition, long-term changes were noted in the rats' brain chemistry that were similar to those seen in morphine or heroin users.
These findings, among others, have clearly demonstrated that even short-term exposure to pleasure-producing foods is enough to change brain chemistry and functioning--as well as gene expression--therefore leading to addiction.
Even more frightening is the fact that should you continue to eat and/or "get high" on these addictive foods, your DNA may become permanently altered and the effects could be passed on to your children and their children for generations to come.
We have clearly turned into a nation of fast food junkies that have lost all sense and sensibility, as well as control, in pursuit of our next quick, easy and convenient fix.