Two Steps To Controlling Your Overeating

Research into why so many of us overeat is producing some surprising results. Scientists at the University of Southern California (USC) have discovered two ways you may be able to curb your intake of some of those extra calories.

First, don’t look at ads for fatty foods. Simply viewing pictures of high-fat dishes can bring on cravings for similar fare. Those pictures stimulate parts of your brain that makes you want to go on a calorie binge.

“This stimulation of the brain’s reward areas may contribute to overeating and obesity…” warns researcher Kathleen Page.

The second finding is that you should stop indulging in soft drinks. Drinking bubbly, over-sweetened soda pop not only provides a whopping dose of sugary calories, it also makes your brain scream for more food.

The USC scientists used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to measure people’s brain responses to seeing pictures of food and consuming sugary drinks. Both activities had overweight subjects hungering for more, more, more.

So if you want to eat less, less, less, avoid the food ads and drink plain water to help calm your cravings.