The ultimate craving - How industry designs food to be as addictive as narcotics (and keeps us coming back for more)

Tuesday, March 19, 2013 by: Carolanne Wright
Tags: processed food, cravings, addiction

(NaturalNews) It's not surprising that processed foods are designed to foster addictive behavior -- robbing us of our health, serenity and hard-earned cash. Sugar, fat, salt and artificial flavors are manipulated in such a way that after one taste, consumers just cannot help themselves and a vicious cycle begins. Not only ingredients, but texture, shape and 'mouth feel' are all heavily researched and refined to create a highly pleasurable experience as well. Even though the average American does not view junk food as an addiction, researchers have discovered unhealthy food can actually seize the brain in the same way nicotine, cocaine and other drugs do -- leaving us at the mercy of cravings and binges.

Processed food - The devil is in the details

Picture for a moment two pieces of chocolate. Both have identical ingredients and are processed in the same manner except for one crucial difference: shape. One is square and the other round. The commercial food industry is betting the latter will be the chocolate of choice -- hooking more repeat customers while selling a higher volume. Incredibly, the size and shape of chocolate is big business. For three years, Nestle studied the "detection mechanisms in the oral cavity" and "improving melt-in-mouth quality while simultaneously reserving enough space in the mouth for the aroma to enrich the sensorial experience," according to their press release. In a nutshell, the round shape will bring greater pleasure and higher consumption rates while increasing corporate profits. And Nestle is just one instance. In the highly competitive field of processed and fast food, neuroscience has entered the scene to help create the most addictive, lucrative and sought-after junk food.

Consider "sensory-specific satiety." Industry developers label this holy grail the 'bliss point.' The idea is where a food does does not completely satisfy, but is pleasurable enough to induce cravings. Michael Moss explains in the New York Times article, "The Extraordinary Science of Addictive Junk Food:"

"The biggest hits - be they Coca-Cola or Doritos - owe their success to complex formulas that pique the taste buds enough to be alluring but don't have a distinct, overriding single flavor that tells the brain to stop eating."

Interestingly, nicotine and narcotic addictions hijack the brain in a similar fashion.

Irresistible allure of engineered edibles

Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, believes there is a "tremendous overlap between drugs in the brain and food in the brain." A good example is found with research at The Scripps Research Institute. The investigation showed "...the same molecular mechanisms that drive people into drug addiction are behind the compulsion to overeat, pushing people into obesity." During the three year experiment, rats were fed either a nutritious diet or one that was extremely unhealthy yet very palatable. According to Associate Professor Paul J. Kenny:

"In the study, the animals completely lost control over their eating behavior, the primary hallmark of addiction. They continued to overeat even when they anticipated receiving electric shocks, highlighting just how motivated they were to consume the palatable food."

Kenny continues, "what happens in addiction is lethally simple. The reward pathways in the brain have been so overstimulated that the system basically turns on itself, adapting to the new reality of addiction, whether its cocaine or cupcakes ... These findings confirm what we and many others have suspected, that overconsumption of highly pleasurable food triggers addiction-like neuroadaptive responses in brain reward circuitries, driving the development of compulsive eating."

Sources for this article include:

http://www.cbc.ca

http://www.nytimes.com

http://www.businessweek.com

http://www.thatsfit.com

About the author:
Carolanne believes if we want to see change in the world, we need to be the change. As a nutritionist, wellness coach and natural foods chef, she has encouraged others to embrace a healthy lifestyle of green living for over 13 years. Through her website www.Thrive-Living.net she looks forward to connecting with other like-minded people who share a similar vision.

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