The biochemistry of compulsive eating

 Just got out of a 2-day training on the brain chemistry of addiction, and the lecturer (Ph.D. pharmacist/local university professor/specializing in addiction, incredibly well-respected around these parts) included the brain chemistry of compulsive eating.  In short, in both alcohol and drug addiction, and addiction to carbs and fat, the process is exactly the same, in the same place in the brain.   Some of us are born with it (by virtue of being born with low levels of certain brain chemicals); some of us eat our way there (by high ingestion of carbs and fats).  If we eat our way there (by repeated exposure to large amounts of X substance), the brain chemistry is permanently altered.  It does not go back.  Our brains go from feeling “rewarded and satisfied" from eating the Snickers bar to feeling pain/guilt and no amount of the substance can give us that satisfaction we are looking for.  The rest of our lives, we have to learn to manage the pain that our brain now experiences.  Pain management.  That’s what AA, exercise, meditation or the myriad of other tools we use are for.  While this is somewhat depressing, it does validate my own personal experience, and that made me feel a little less crazy.  I get lots of pleasure out of being normal weight and buying new clothes, etc., but nothing gives me the euphoria I used to experience with food. 

But the last 10 years (20 years?) I don’t remember any euphoria – just pain and shame and guilt.  This is normal for all addicts, including me.   It's the price I pay for my addiction. 

Hi.. thanks for sharing this! I am very familiar with a lot of this however I do not understand why they are including fat in the addiction component. From what I understand fat does not cause the same biochemical changes in the brain.

I have not seen any studies showing brain changes or addictive tendencies for fat in the absence of carbs. Also it is my understanding that part of the reason that people are addicted to these things is because the body is not adapted to eating these things and thus provokes an immune system response when they are ingested since for millions of years we evolved to eat a hunter-gatherer diet.

 I'll have to look back at my notes and try to make sense of all this technical info that I had never heard before (he emailed me a set of the slides).  But he did indicate that depletion of one particular brain chemical makes one crave fat -- he mentioned it when talking about marijuana as well as compulsive eating -- the "marijuana munchies" usually involve foods that contain fat as well as carbs, but rarely carbs alone.  I have a whole computer full of info that is going to take some time to sort through. 

"If we eat our way there (by repeated exposure to large amounts of X substance), the brain chemistry is permanently altered. It does not go back. "

I believe that for dieters but not for us. There are studies that show that brain chemistry is altered with gastric bypass. (They only studied bypass, but I'd be shocked if it wasn't also true for vsg and ds.) This is one reason why this surgery gives us a fighting chance to keep our weight off. It's not going to fix all our brain problems but it helps a lot.

Also, on a related note, we're hardwired to want to eat food when we see it. Knowing that has helped me a TON. I don't beat myself up for having the urge to eat food I don't even want as soon as I see it any more. I just make sure I stop seeing it. Sometimes just knowing it's an instinctive response is enough to stop it too.

 there has probably been little or no research on how WLS impacts these particular brain chemicals -- but my experience, as well as yours, says that there is something going on.  My appetite is certainly different than it used to be.  (I am 2 years out)  I would love to see someone do some research in that area.   He talked about how some level of brain chemical needs to stay under 200 (a therapeutic dose), and how anything that goes over 200 starts to become addictive (i.e., ****** brings it to 150; nicotine brings it to 300; methamphetamine to over a thousand) etc. 

I know currently and that's pre and post op peanut butter ranks right up there with an ******  Very interesting...

Well the fat makes foods taste better and is often accompanying good tasting carbs, but my understanding is that the fat is not addictive. Plus we need fat, we do not need carbs. Sounds like a great seminar.. what was the occasion for going?

 The occasion was re-licensure (I have a few different licenses and certifications in the mental health/addiction field and continuing education is required to keep my shingle hanging on the door)

Thanks for the post! I'm an addiction researcher and yes, these reward mechanisms are indeed the same for drugs and food. Obese individuals have been shown to have lower levels of certain dopamine receptors in the brain (dopamine makes us feel good...increases in dopamine are linked to everything rewarding including drugs, food, exercise, sex, etc) and recent studies have even shown genetic mutations in these receptors in obese individuals. These same receptors are also decreased in drug addicts, further lending support to how everything is related/overlapping.

 That genetic mutation stuff is fascinating.  What we do, ingest, learn, etc actually changes our genetic code that is then passed down to our children and grandchildren.  I had read a research study a year or two ago that showed that rats that learned a maze had grandchildren that learned the maze faster than grandchildren of other rats.  That the actual genetic code is altered just blows me away.  That explains so much about family of origin issues, trauma, vulnerability to addiction or obesity, violence, etc. etc.