Rising rates of obesity are linked to increased junk food intake. A recent study has shown that junk food could be as addictive as drugs. Intake of junk foods like burgers, chips, sausages and cake could lead to addiction of food high in sugar, salt and fat by programming the brain.
The craving for high fat and high sugar foods goes on increasing and at one point of time it becomes a substitute for happiness that why people go on eatingjunk food despite being aware of the fact that it is harming their health.
Dr Paul Kenny, a neuroscientist, used animal models to study the impact of intake of high fat and high sugar food. For the study, he divided rats into the three groups.
First group was given normal amounts of healthy food. The second group was given restricted amounts of junk food while the third group was given freedom to eat unlimited amounts of junk.
Data analysis showed that the rats in third group started binge-eating whereas no adverse effects were observed in the first and second group. When the part of the brain that feels pleasure was electronically stimulated, it was found that rats needed more and morejunk food to feel as happy as rats in other groups.
