Getting the Twinkie off your back

Getting the Twinkie off your back


Turns out French fries share something with cocaine, nicotine and a few other things on any doctor’s lift of substances to avoid: withdrawal symptoms.

This might not be a surprise to many people who have kicked off a diet by eliminating their favorite junk food. Just about all of us have been there as cravings grow and threaten a new healthy lifestyle.

Now, University of Michigan researchers have lent some scientific credence to the idea of food addiction.

Researchers found 231 people online who had reported cutting down on highly processed foods in the prior year. As you might expect, those include all the favorite junk food groups: pastries, pizza, French fries and other tasty items. The volunteers then reported the types of symptoms they experienced after going cold turkey. Those included feelings of sadness, cravings, increased irritability and tiredness in the two to five days after quitting these foods. Such feelings dissipated after the initial week.

The tapering off of symptoms, researchers say, parallels what occurs with drugs.

They note these processed foods might affect the brain in the same way as tobacco, drugs or alcohol. And, as with any drug addiction, it might also help explain why dieting so often fails. Withdrawal symptoms make a junk food relapse all the more likely.

Indeed, the Michigan researchers say, the greater the intensity of the symptoms, the more likely a diet attempt will fail.

The findings are controversial. Some scientists say it is misguided to compare drug withdrawal symptoms with those experienced after eliminating your favorite brand of potato chips. But in both instances, uncontrolled cravings can lead to poor health decisions.

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