Train Your Brain to Prefer Healthy Foods: Curbing Obesity with New Techniques

There may be a new way to combat the obesity epidemic. Scientists have found that it may just be possible to train our brains to prefer healthy, low-calorie foods over unhealthy higher-calorie foods.

"We don't start out in life loving French fries and hating, for example, whole wheat pasta," said Susan B. Roberts, senior author of the new study, in a news release. "This conditioning happens over time in response to eating-repeatedly!-what is out there in the toxic food environment."

In order to learn a bit more about why we choose to eat the things we do, the scientists conducted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) brain scans on two groups-one group was in a new weight loss program while the other group was not enrolled in the program. The researchers found that among those who participated in the weight loss program, the brain scans revealed changes in areas of the brain reward center associated with learning and addiction. After six months, this area had increased sensitivity to healthy, lower-calorie foods. This indicated that there was an increased reward and enjoyment of healthier food cues.

"The weight loss program is specifically designed to change how people react to different foods, and our study shows those who participated in it had an increased desire for healthier foods along with a decreased preference for unhealthy foods, the combined effects of which are probably critical for sustainable weight control," said Sai Krupa Das, co-author of the new study. "To the best of our knowledge this is the first demonstration of this important switch."

The findings reveal that healthy eating can be achieved partly by training. By making an effort to eat healthy foods over a period of time, it's possible to train your brain to prefer these foods as opposed to high-calorie ones.

The findings are published in the journal Nutrition & Diabetes.