Hormone deficiency may cause you to overeat
You’re not really hungry but you still accept another piece of
pizza or the last helping of dessert. It’s not you. A hormone
deficiency in your brain could be causing
you to overeat for pleasure.
A Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School study published in
Cell Reports has revealed that the reduction of glucagon like peptide-1 (GLP-1)
in the central nervous system of laboratory mice caused them to overeat and
consume more high fat food. When the researchers enhanced the hormone in the
brains of the mice, the rodents were less interested in fatty foods.
What are GLP-1 peptides? They are small sequences of amino acids
that are secreted from cells in the small intestine and the brain. They work as
physiological regulators of appetite and food intake – basically they transmit
the message that the stomach is full to the brain. Apart from this, they
stimulate insulin secretion and inhibit glucagon secretion.
The research team at Rutgers says it’s not clear how the GLP-1
released in the brain contributes to appetite regulation. The absence of GLP-1
may not be the only reason people overeat but this is a significant finding.
The
study also reveals that targeting
neurons in the mesolimbic dopamine system, a reward circuit in the brain, may
be a better way to control overeating and obesity. This would involve targeting
a specific section rather than the whole body and would have fewer side
effects.
This is the same area of the brain that controls other addictive
behaviors such as drug/ alcohol abuse and nicotine addiction, meaning that the
study could also help understand how GLP-1 influences motivational behaviors.
The how, why and when we eat are behaviors controlled by the
central nervous system. There has to be a reason that people suffer from
hedonic hunger – the drive to eat for pleasure instead of to gain energy?
Worldwide, overeating, which leads to obesity, is seen as food addiction, a neuropsychiatric disorder. Researchers say the physiological and motivational factors will lead to a better understanding of modern eating habits, may weed out causes of dysfunctions, and could lead to targeted therapies for treating obesity. Finding out how the central nervous system regulates food intake behavior via GLP-1 signaling may help tackle this health issue.
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