Brain works up Hunger on seeing Sugary Treats
If you get hungry and cannot resist those sugary treats on seeing them, guiltily suffering from a lack of abstinence, then it’s time to stop blaming yourself. Scientists have discovered that our brains are actually programmed to spring into action on seeing sugar-coated goodies. And by action we mean gorging on these delightful foods.
Researchers at Northwestern University in Chicago have carried out functional MRI brain scans for this study. They found that when hungry people were shown an image of a doughnut, their brain went into overdrive.
According to Dr.Marsel Mesulam, senior author of the research, “The part of the brain is able to detect what is motivationally significant, saying not only one is hungry but here is the food.”
The citing of doughnuts as an example is just one instance of how the human brain works. The research points out how the brain goes through all sorts of relevant material, and not just sugary treats.
For instance, the study also suggested that if one is in a forest and hears the rustling of leaves, we may be urged to pay a lot of attention as this signals a sign of danger. However, the context changes when one is in an office, as it becomes significantly less relevant.
The major job of the brain is to match response to the context, concluded Dr.Mesulam.
March 11th, 2008 at 6:13 am
hey
i do not think this is absolutely true. i know our brain is programmed to show reflexes when shown a food item but its not true always. me for example dont feel like eating sugary food even when m very hungry.
The only feeling i get is “i cant have this”.
so there’s got to be another explanation.
priyanka
March 11th, 2008 at 4:43 pm
What else were you thinking would happen when yo show pic of food to a hungry person or a candle light to a person enclosed in a pitch dark room or a hi fi bed to a person deprived of sleep?????
Obviously some part of the brain would be triggerred in context to env otherwise we won;t survive. More useful would have been to find out exactly what part of thebrain is being triggerred and what chemicals or harmones are causing this response…may be then we can cure some deficiencies in ppl finding hard to sleep/eat/focus/being attentive when the right context and options are available.
March 12th, 2008 at 12:19 am
It is very correct .The brain works better if it is little starved.
I have my own personal experience that if I eat below normal quantity of food at night I can remember my dreams much better. So with less food the brain works better and tries to remember the dreams.