A diet high in fat interferes with the functioning of the mesolimbic dopamine system, which plays a key role in controlling human motivation.
This is reported by researchers from the University of Montreal in Canada in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology.
The lead author of the study, Dr. Stephanie Fulton, says: "Our latest work has shown that a diet high in fat, regardless of your body weight, can disrupt the work of the brain structure, which is closely related to mood disorders, addiction to drugs, and overeating - just a few states that depend on motivation ".
"Another key finding is that the continued intake of large amounts of saturated fat (in our case, palm oil) disturbs the sensitivity of this area of ??the brain, but monounsaturated fatty acids (olive oil) do not have this effect," adds Fulton.
To obtain these results, Canadian scientists conducted a series of experiments in rats.
The first group of animals was control: they were given a diet with a low fat content and approximately equal amounts of saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids. The second group of rats received food with a large number of monounsaturated fatty acids, with which 50% of all calories were supplied to their bodies. The third group was put on a fatty diet with a high content of saturated fatty acids (palm oil). In all groups, the animals could eat to the dump - they were not completely limited in the amount of the portion, but each serving contained a strictly defined percentage of nutrients.
After eight weeks, the researchers found that all animals still have comparable body weight, insulin and leptin (major metabolic hormones). After this, they conducted a series of biochemical and behavioral tests that help to analyze the functioning of the dopaminergic system of rats.
"We found that those rats that received a lot of palm oil had serious disruptions in the mesolimbic dopamine system. Not only our team, and other scientists have already come to the conclusion that with such a diet, the brain tries to compensate for too much "reward" in the form of fats, as it occurs in the development of tolerance to drugs, because of which the body requires an increase in dose. Therefore, in an organism that receives too many desirable fats, there is a decrease in satisfaction from them, and it requires even more to saturate. By the way, the same applies to sugar, "- explains the results of the co-author of the study Cecile Hryhorczuk (Cecile Hryhorczuk).
The study by Dr.
Fulton was the first of its kind, which shed light on the change in control of motivation under the influence of monounsaturated fatty acids. Now it became obvious that in order to combat excess weight, one should pay attention not only to the girth of the waist, the level of hormones and insulin, but also to the state of the dopamine system of the brain, on which much depends on human behavior.
Dr. Fulton hopes that the results of her research in the coming years will form the basis of a fundamentally new therapy for obesity.
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