#4 Why Our Snack Cravings Aren’t Just a Lack of Willpower

“Never trust a skinny mouse in a snack cupboard.” – Ancient Cheese Proverb (possibly)

Have you ever opened a packet of chips just to have a few—and suddenly found yourself licking your fingers and wondering where it all went? Or only having one block of chocolate and then finishing the slab? Don’t worry. You’re not weak. And you’re not alone.

There’s a now-famous study where researchers gave mice access to ultra-processed foods—the kind that humans find in brightly coloured wrappers. Within weeks, the mice gained weight, lost control, and kept eating even when it made them sick. They didn’t even run away when threatend!

I sometimes think about the mice in this study… and feel sorry for them…shame.

It’s as if their brains were hijacked… but then isn’t it almost the same thing happening to us and our children when we are eating too much processed food?

What the Mouse Study Taught Us (and Why It Matters)…

In a 2013 study by Johnson & Kenny (Nature Neuroscience), rats were given access to highly palatable, processed foods—things like sausage, cheesecake, and frosting. The result?

The rats:

Overate compulsively

Showed signs of addiction-like behaviour

Their dopamine receptors became less sensitive to dopamine.(what made them happy previosly, won’t make them happy now)… sort of like insulin resistance but for dopamine

Kept eating even when they got shocked (literally) for doing so

These were mice, yes. But, similar behaviours are observed in humans! Even in myself… I will continue eating the chocolate even if I know it’s not good for me!

Ultra-processed foods rewire the brain, especially the reward pathways, in ways eerily similar to a cocaine or heroin addiction.

It’s Not You. It’s the Doritos.

Processed foods are designed by food scientists to be hyper-palatable—a perfect storm of salt, sugar, fat, and artificial flavourings that overwhelm our natural hunger signals. Once we’re hooked, willpower alone is like bringing a pool noodle to a sword fight!

We are under control of the processed food. (Or maybe our gut microbes are, and we are under control of our gut microbes…but that’sa whole other story.)

And it’s not just adults.

Kids are also vulnerable. Children’s brains are still developing. The prefrontal cortex—the part responsible for impulse control and decision-making—isn’t fully formed until their mid-20s. So, when kids are regularly exposed to addictive processed foods, their brains adapt… but maybe not in a good way.

Some studies suggest this may lead to:

Greater risk of obesity

Mood and attention issues

Lifelong cravings

Constant Dissatisfaction

This means that by constantly giving our kids processed foods, we think we are making them happy, but we are actually making life more difficult for them in the long run.

What Can We Do? How do we regain control?

1. Stop criticizing yourself. You’re not lacking willpower, broken or weak. You’re reacting to a biologically potent food environment.


2. Read those labels. If it has ingredients you can’t pronounce or wouldn’t cook with, it’s likely engineered for addiction.


3. Add real, whole foods first—fiber, fruit, veggies, legumes—so there’s less room for the other stuff.


4. Protect our kids. Save the treats for special occasions, not daily coping mechanisms. Make home-made treats (which I do believe are a lot healthier for kids). Let the teachers know that kids don’t need sweets after completing every activity.


5. Talk about it. Understanding science helps reduce shame and build better habits together.

What else can we do to get out of the control of processed food?

Are you man or mouse?

References:

1. Johnson, P. M., & Kenny, P. J. (2010).
Dopamine D2 receptors in addiction-like reward dysfunction and compulsive eating in obese rats.
Nature Neuroscience, 13(5), 635–641.
https://doi.org/10.1038/nn.2519
Free full text via PubMed Central


2. Pelchat, M. L., Johnson, A., Chan, R., Valdez, J., & Ragland, J. D. (2004).
Images of desire: food-craving activation during fMRI.
NeuroImage, 23(4), 1486–1493.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroimage.2004.08.023
PubMed link