New research from Queen’s University in Canada has found a strong link between brain activity and the food we choose to eat. The study showed that people with lower body mass index (BMI) were able to make healthy food choices with fewer changes in brain activity. In contrast, people with higher BMI needed more effort from their brain to make similar choices.
The researchers looked at brain scans from 123 participants who were asked to make food choices while in an MRI machine. Sometimes they judged how tasty a food looked, and other times they focused on how healthy it was.
The study found that people who had better self-control - especially when thinking about health - needed only small changes in their brain activity. These participants usually had a lower BMI. However, those with higher BMI needed larger shifts in brain function to choose healthier options.
This may help explain why some people find it more difficult to eat healthily. Their brains must work harder to focus on long-term goals like health, instead of short-term rewards like taste.
Other studies have also looked at how the brain controls food choices. For example, scientists at Johns Hopkins University studied mice and found that changing one brain area (called the ventral pallidum) could switch the mouse’s food preference - even from a tasty food like cake to something less enjoyable. Another study found that people with more grey matter in certain brain areas showed better control over their eating decisions.
These results suggest that the brain plays an important role in our eating habits and that understanding brain function may help people improve their diets.
πOriginal article: Neuroscientists Reveal Link Between Your Brain and What You Eat - Newsweek
Discussion Questions
- Have you ever tried to change your eating habits? How did it go?
- What do you think is more important when choosing food: taste or health? Why?
- How do advertisements or social media influence your food choices?
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