Homer Simpson, (c) Fox Media
“All right, Brain, you don’t like me, and I don’t like you. But let’s just do this, and I can get back to killing you with beer.”
- Homer Simpson
There is an almost bottomless fount of wisdom to be found in the utterances of the bumbling, balding patriarch. However, this tidbit is more than a mere call for teamwork to help survive, a paean to the tasty deliciousness of a frosty beverage, and a completely useless mode of communication with an organ that doesn’t have a sense of hearing.
It might actually be supported by scientific evidence from several different directions.
Yep. Our brains, source of our motivation — whether it’s cognitive awareness of health issues, or something much less high-minded — are also putting up speed bumps and hurdles to slow down, if not outright sabotage, our efforts at healthier eating and exercise.
In one study, merely being exposed to exhortations towards activity and exercise caused participants to unconsciously snack more. It’s not clear whether this was a result of the promotional materials working, and eating was the only activity outlet available, or if the consideration of exercise itself caused hunger (either to fuel, or recover from, the intended exertion). In another, the brain activity of subjects was monitored, and the pleasure centers reported far less activity when they were told they were getting a low-fat milkshake, even though it was exactly the same as the shake given to the control group.
Our brains are complex and inscrutable organs, and sometimes, they are really, really annoying.
It’s really interesting when you think of this enterprise of the food industry to come up with lower-calorie alternatives. This study shows that it may not be such a good idea to have all those low-fat alternatives since people may be experiencing less of a sense of reward when they eat — and that would make these low-calorie foods completely useless.
– Eric Stice, of the Oregon Research Institute
Another study, this one from the International Journal of Eating Disorders, researchers compared the brain chemistry of so-called “emotional eaters” — people who turn to snacks or comfort food when they feel down — to that of folks who didn’t eat to improve their mood. Researcher Stice pointed out that, unsurprisingly, when the “emotional eaters” felt down and then ate something sweet, their brain’s reward centers lit up, improving their mood. People in the control group showed no change when given a snack to brighten their dark mood.
None of which solves the real issue: how to get revenge on our brains with zero-calorie beer. Mmmmm…. beer.
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