Author: frivvy89
Scientists at Rutgers Brain Health Institute have discovered that a small group of brain cells in the hypothalamus called ‘orexin’ neurons could be a promising target for medications for controlling binge eating episodes in individuals with obesity. These neurons, named for the chemical messenger they use to communicate with other brain cells, have previously been shown to be important for addiction to several drugs, including cocaine. “Several key symptoms of eating disorders, such as the sense of losing control, overlap with what we know about the driven nature of drug addiction,” said Dr. Gary Aston-Jones, director of the Brain Health…
Reading Time: 5 minutes The World Health Organization (WHO) has now classified gaming disorder as a mental health condition. WHO defines gaming disorder an addiction to playing video games. Consequently, this new disorder is included in the 11th edition of WHO’s International Classification of Diseases Manual. Gaming disorder is similar to other addictions, such as gambling addiction or substance abuse. Therefore, this disorder is characterized by the inability to control an obsession with video gaming. As a result, the need to continue the behavior increases over time. The World Health Organization decided to classify gaming addiction disorder based on reviews of…
Psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder often run in families. In a new international collaboration, researchers explored the genetic connections between these and other disorders of the brain at a scale that far eclipses previous work on the subject. The team determined that psychiatric disorders share many genetic variants, while neurological disorders (such as Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s) appear more distinct. Published today in Science, the study takes the broadest look yet at how genetic variation relates to brain disorders. The results indicate that psychiatric disorders likely have important similarities at a molecular level, which current diagnostic categories do…
Over time, half of the people taking certain drugs for Parkinson’s disease may develop impulse control disorders such as compulsive gambling, shopping or eating, according to a study published in the June 20, 2018, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. In Parkinson’s, a vital chemical in the brain called dopamine that regulates movement is gradually reduced. Parkinson’s is treated with levodopa, which converts to dopamine in the brain, or with dopamine agonists, which work by activating dopamine receptors. “Our study suggests that impulse control disorders are even more common than we thought in…
Hi, again! If I thought winter term was crazy, I had another thing coming for me just a little ways down the road. The last couple of weeks have consisted of studying for (and taking, and passing…and getting grades that I am VERY pleased with!) final exams for my five classes, packing up my house, moving all of my stuff from Corvallis and back to Portland, many “last hurrah” festivities with all of my fellow college-graduating friends at school, beginning celebrating each of my four friends who are getting married THIS summer, one being tonight (and two are in Bend…of…
You have a brand-new mortgage and your work hours are cut, your partner has cancelled a weekend away and the dishwasher has just flooded the kitchen. Before you reach for a handful of cookies or the brie that’s calling you from the fridge, get curious about the motivation behind your emotional eating. Am I really hungry? Why do we eat if it’s not for sustenance to fuel our bodies? To fill a need? For something to do? Because we’re happy, sad, tired or afraid? Turns out it can be all of the above. Dr Michelle May, author of Eat What You…
The tendency for children to eat more or less when stressed and upset is mainly influenced by the home environment and not by genes, according to a new UCL-led study. The study, published today in Pediatric Obesity, found that genetics only play a small role in young children’s emotional overeating and undereating, unlike other eating behaviours in childhood such as food fussiness.The current research, which analysed data from over 398 British twins, builds on a previous UCL study published in 2017 which highlighted the strong effect of the home environment on emotional eating.In this study, half the families were selected…
Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and moreStay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Children who turn to food when they are feeling stressed or upset have learned the behaviour rather than inherited it, new research suggests.A study by University College London (UCL), which is published in the journal Pediatric Obesity, found that the main cause of emotional eating was home environment and largely due to parents giving their children food to make them feel better.The new research builds on a…
19 June 2018Image source, Getty ImagesChildren who eat more or less when stressed or upset have learned the behaviour rather than inherited it, a study suggests.A study by University College London found home environment was the main cause of emotional eating. And this was due to parental behaviours including giving upset children their favourite food to soothe them. But eating-disorder charity Beat says parents shouldn’t be blamed for children’s eating issues.Emotional eating “indicates an unhealthy relationship to food”, said senior lead researcher Dr Clare Llewellyn.”Rather than finding more positive strategies to regulate their emotions, they’re using food,” she said.”A tendency…
Getty ImagesChildren who eat more or less when stressed or upset have learned the behaviour rather than inherited it, a study suggests.A study by University College London found home environment was the main cause of emotional eating. And this was due to parental behaviours including giving upset children their favourite food to soothe them. But eating-disorder charity Beat says parents shouldn’t be blamed for children’s eating issues.Emotional eating “indicates an unhealthy relationship to food”, said senior lead researcher Dr Clare Llewellyn.”Rather than finding more positive strategies to regulate their emotions, they’re using food,” she said.”A tendency to want to eat…