Typical binge foods share a common feature: They are composed mainly of fast-digesting carbohydrates that rapidly raise blood sugar …. Popcorn, potato chips, pretzels, fries, breakfast cereals, candy, and sugary beverages are relatively bland, yet they are remarkably easy to overconsume. ….
To explore how these carbohydrates affect the brain, my collaborators and I gave volunteers two milkshakes matched for calories, nutrients, and sweetness. One contained fast-digesting carbohydrate (corn syrup); the other, slow-digesting carbohydrate (corn starch). After the fast-digesting version, blood sugar initially surged. However, four hours later, it dipped, and the volunteers reported greater hunger. At that time, functional MRI showed strong activation of the nucleus accumbens — a brain area that mediates reward, cravings, and addiction.
This finding suggests that we crave processed carbohydrates not because of their palatability, but because of how they affect our metabolism. … We come to crave them specifically because they rapidly raise blood sugar.
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The definition of ultra-processing reflects a philosophy that idealizes traditional culinary practices and treats modern food processing methods as suspect, regardless of their health effects.
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Delicious, calorie-rich food — whether home-prepared or packaged — isn’t the problem. What matters is how long we stay satisfied (satiety) relative to calories consumed.
