WP: Crave Man (on the neurology of overeating)

[MountainLaurel]

I think this book is going to make for a very interesting read . . .

He went in the middle of the night, long after the last employee had locked up the Chili's Grill and Bar. He'd steer his car around the back, check to make sure no one was around and then quietly approach the dumpster. If anyone noticed the man foraging through the trash, they would have assumed he was a vagrant. Except he was wearing black dress slacks and padded gardening gloves. "I'm surprised he didn't wear a tie," his wife said dryly.

The high-octane career path of David A. Kessler, the Harvard-trained doctor, lawyer, medical school dean and former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration had come to this: nocturnal dumpster diving. Sometimes, he would just reach in. Other times, he would climb in. It took many of these forays until Kessler emerged with his prize: ingredient labels affixed to empty cardboard boxes that spelled out the fats, salt and sugar used to make the Southwestern Eggrolls, Boneless Shanghai Wings and other dishes served by the nation's second-largest restaurant chain.

Kessler was on a mission to understand a problem that has vexed him since childhood: why he can't resist certain foods.

His resulting theory, described in his new book, "The End of Overeating," is startling. Foods high in fat, salt and sugar alter the brain's chemistry in ways that compel people to overeat. "Much of the scientific research around overeating has been physiology -- what's going on in our body," he said. "The real question is what's going on in our brain."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/26/AR2009042602711.html

[gblady]

1. thanks for this article....

as one who has see-sawed with my weight for years...
this is such important information to get out there.

I have found that if I stick to whole, fresh, natural ingredients...
then the craving vanishes....totally.

For me it's especially true of the processed grains and sugars...if I have one bite...
I'm craving all day long...I know there is a chemical reaction that gets triggered.
If I avoid what I know creates the craving, life is much easier...and I feel healthier.

[supernova]

2. I knew it!! Thank you, David Kessler!

I've said for years, that it seems like when I eat all the stuff that he mentions, anything you see at a fast food restaurant or a food court, or even a lot of supposedly good restaurant meals, it's impossible to eat "just A serving, or just a little bit."


I too had trouble with my weight most of my life. I know exactly what he's talking about. At the restaurant, let's take a bowl of pasta for example or the wonderfully delicious artisan bread and olive oil that comes before the meal. If I eat either of those things, my brain basically says:

"That's great, when are we gonna eat?"
I take another bite.

"That's great, when are we gonna eat?"
I take another bite.

"That's great, when are we gonna eat?"
I take another bite.

"That's great, when are we gonna eat?"
I take another bite.

"That's great, when are we gonna eat?"
I take another bite.

I didn't come to understand the addictive qualities of these foods until I started eating low-carb when I turned 40. Not coincidentally, a lot of those foods are on the naughty list for low carb eaters. You can't have processed grains, or all that much fruit (but it doesn't take much to get the nutrition you need), or sugar.

A funny thing happened. i stopped wanting these foods. I was satisfied with less food. I wasn't fixated on food all the time. That obsessive thinking in my head went away. I could eat a meal with proper portion sizes, enjoy it, and that was that.

I lost weight, and went back down to what I should weigh for someone my size.

Alas, I tried to refit those foods, like bread back into my eating and I went up the scale again. :-( x(

So, I'm back to doing what I did the last time: whole veggies, adequate protein, some fruit, a little nuts and olive oil.

So, thank you Dr Kessler for bringing the science to something I suspected at the personal level. :thumbsup:

Can't wait to read the book.