As a rule, when someone talks about drugs and junk food, we believe that they are concepts encompassed in very different categories, and in fact they are very similar: drugs and junk food behave in the same way in our body Once you put them in your body, it is difficult to get rid of them.
Remember the slogan of famous potato chips that said "Why can not you eat only one?" Well, much has been researched about the reason for that statement and new studies have found more reasons to do this parallelism between drugs and junk food.
Why this similarity between drugs and junk food?
In the study that was conducted in the psychology department of the University of Michigan and the Obesity Research Center of NY , the researchers made the participants look at the pictures of food next to each other, for example, a picture of a pizza next to a picture of a cucumber. They were asked to identify which of the two foods they thought might have the most problems. The "problems" to which the researchers referred were of the type "losing control and eating too much" or, what is the same, with which food could trigger signs of addiction.
The study came to compare up to 35 foods. The researchers had specifically chosen foods that belonged to one of these categories: high fat and refined sugar, carbohydrates (such as chocolate or chips), high in fat but not refined (such as cheese or bacon) and refined but not fatty carbohydrates (such as soft drinks).
In general, those foods that the participants found most addictive , were those that had been highly processed to increase their level of fat and refined carbohydrates, with the consequent high glycemic load. That measurement refers to what is the highest level of blood glucose that the food will provide after eating it; a high glycemic load, generally indicates low quality carbohydrates.
The group that participated in the research consisted of 120 students from the University of Michigan and another more diverse group of 398 people found through Amazon's Mechanical Turk.
Although there were slight differences in the classification of foods in the two groups, both coincided in the same central refreshments; Pizza, chocolate, ice cream, cookies, cheeseburger and chips.
What does the science of addictive snacks say?
It makes a lot of sense, for the researchers, that this list of foods that came out in the research, is a group of more addictive foods than, for example, a good steak on the grill.
According to the researchers, These foods have some key things in common with addictive drugs; they are consumed in high doses and absorbed quickly , which causes sudden spikes in blood sugar.
As with drugs, these foods have also been processed, modifying them with extra fat and refined carbohydrates, subtracting fiber, proteins and water.
See a clear example of why the processed substances are more addictive: Coca leaves are not as addictive as when they are processed and give rise to cocaine. Similarly, grilled chicken is not as addictive as fried chicken.
But this is not something that happens exclusively to humans, rats have shown that they can also become addicted to certain foods. Some experiments have shown that they choose highly processed foods even if they must suffer some punishment, for example, an electric shock. So we can say that addiction is something that goes beyond the borders of species.
Although we do not need scientific study to know that we are not likely to binge on cucumber or carrot slices, it is the first study to support the theory that highly processed foods are more addictive than natural substances and that could be one of the many keys to fight against the obesity epidemic that is estimated to affect 85% of American adults in 2030.
They could even lead to changes in the law, as said the study's principal author and professor of psychology at the University of Michigan, Erica Schulte:
"If some people associate the properties of some foods with addictive food, this can affect nutritional guidelines and public policy initiatives, such as the marketing of these foods to children."
If junk food affects your body in a similar way to drugs, should not we treat them the same? What do you think? Are you for or against junk food? What dietary guidelines do you follow in your day to day? Leave us your comments and share with us your opinion about drugs and junk food. We will be happy to read you!