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Diet, Nutrition, & Health: Food Addiction

A topic guide covering aspects of diet, nutrition, and health.

Internet Resources

Junk Food, Porn, Video Games - Addictions?

The course concludes with an exploration of other potentially addictive behaviors. Professor Polk argues that some artificial stimuli - junk food, pornography, and video games to name three - are "supernormal," meaning that they actually activate the brain's reward circuit more strongly than natural stimuli do, leading to some of the same neurological effects as drug use.

Source: Kanopy

Food as Recreational Drugs

Throughout history, we've consumed food not just for nourishment, but also for psychological effects. In this lecture, go inside the world of recreational drugs, including psilocybin mushrooms, edible marijuana treats, and addictions to foods like chocolate or french fries.

Source: Kanopy

Perspectives

The Craving Cure

Drop Addictive Sweets and Starches--and Stop Weight Gain--in 24 HoursFeaturing a 5-part questionnaire to help you identify your personal craving profileJulia Ross, best-selling author and expert in nutrition and overeating, exposes the real reason so many of us can't stick to a healthy diet: our favorite foods are engineered to be addictive. At her clinic in California, Ross and her colleagues treat food addiction where it starts--in the brain--by triggering our natural appetite-regulating neurotransmitters with nutrients called amino acids. It turns out that these protein concentrates boost our neurotransmitters, which broadcast sensations of satisfaction that no food, including chocolate, can override. Thousands of Ross' clients have abolished their cravings for high-calorie confections using this simple nutritional strategy. With The Craving Cure, Ross grants all of us access to this revolutionary approach. The process begins with a five-part questionnaire that helps you identify your unique craving profile and specifies the amino acid supplements you need to curb your specific cravings. Ross' clear explanations of why and how to use the aminos empower you to reclaim your natural appetite control, and her anti-craving eating guidelines will permanently strengthen your dietary defenses. A well-researched and clinically-tested rejection of low-calorie, low-saturated fat, and low-protein diets, The Craving Cure reveals how we can effortlessly and permanently eradicate our cravings to lose weight, rediscover our nutritional heritage, and regain optimal mood, energy, and health.

Your Brain on Food

Why is eating chocolate so pleasurable? Can the function of just one small group of chemicals really determine whether you are happy or sad? Does marijuana help to improve your memory in old age? Is it really best to drink coffee if you want to wake up and be alert? Why is a drug like PCPpotentially lethal? Why does drinking alcohol make you drowsy? Do cigarettes help relieve anxiety? Can eating less food preserve your brain? What are the possible side effects of pills that claim to make you smarter? Why is it so hard to stop smoking? Why did witches once believe that they couldfly? In this book, Gary Wenk demonstrates how, as a result of their effects on certain neurotransmitters concerned with behavior, everything we put into our bodies has direct consequences for how we think, feel, and act. The chapters introduce each of the main neurotransmitters involved withbehavior, discuss its role in the brain, and explain ways to influence it through what we consume.

Dopamine Nation

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES and LOS ANGELES TIMES BESTSELLER "Brilliant... riveting, scary, cogent, and cleverly argued."--Beth Macy, author of Dopesick As heard on Fresh Air This book is about pleasure. It's also about pain. Most important, it's about how to find the delicate balance between the two, and why now more than ever finding balance is essential. We're living in a time of unprecedented access to high-reward, high-dopamine stimuli: drugs, food, news, gambling, shopping, gaming, texting, sexting, Facebooking, Instagramming, YouTubing, tweeting... The increased numbers, variety, and potency is staggering. The smartphone is the modern-day hypodermic needle, delivering digital dopamine 24/7 for a wired generation. As such we've all become vulnerable to compulsive overconsumption.   In Dopamine Nation, Dr. Anna Lembke, psychiatrist and author, explores the exciting new scientific discoveries that explain why the relentless pursuit of pleasure leads to pain...and what to do about it. Condensing complex neuroscience into easy-to-understand metaphors, Lembke illustrates how finding contentment and connectedness means keeping dopamine in check. The lived experiences of her patients are the gripping fabric of her narrative. Their riveting stories of suffering and redemption give us all hope for managing our consumption and transforming our lives. In essence, Dopamine Nation shows that the secret to finding balance is combining the science of desire with the wisdom of recovery.

Food Abuse: Psychopathology of Addiction

Participate in a training course run by Dr Julia Budnik and learn about psychopathology of food abuse and most important regulatory mechanisms on the food intake. Suitable for the specialists working with the issues and clients alike.

Source: Kanopy