Addiction…Final Outline Food Addiction: Causes and Treatment

First Study

Fortuna, J.L. (2012). The obsesity epidemic and food addiction: Clinical similarities to drug

Dependence. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs 44(1), pp. 56-63.

As of 2010, nearly 70% of adult Americans were overweight or obese. Fast food establishments are abundant, portion sizes are larger, and people generally have insufficient intake of Omega 3 fatty acids. Additionally, Americans do not get sufficient physical exercise.

Sugar primes endorphin and dopamine in the nucleus accumbens, similar to the "high" experienced by users of illegal drugs. In some individuals, this brings about addictive behavior very similar to that seen in alcoholics and substance addicts.

Methods

Fortuna reviewed the literature that investigated two clinical similarities between food addiction and drug dependence.

Animal studies show that bingeing on high-sugar foods, compared to fat dense foods, trigger the release of endorphin and dopamine.

3. Similar results were obtained with human subjects.

C. Results

1. Researchers found that cravings for specific drugs and palatable foods exist in many of the same neural pathways.

2. Loss of inhibitory control may occur following the consumption of even a small amount of a food or drug that had previously induced euphoria or displayed palliative properties.

II. Second Study

Karin, R., and Chaudhri, P. (2012). Behavioral addictions: An overview. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs 44(1), pp. 5-17.

A. Introduction

1. Karin and Chaudhri point to the well-known concept of addiction to substances, and argue the term "addiction" can just as readily be applied...

Self-medicating with behavior includes sex addition, compulsive shopping, compulsive gambling, and binge eating.
3. Recent findings shed light on shared attributes of such impulse control disorders. There is little published data on potential behaviors with addictive properties. The current impulse control disorders listed in the DSM-IV classification need more data.

B. Methods

1. The authors reviewed the existing literature on a variety of behavioral addictions in addition to food addiction.

2. The examined the trend toward thinking about non-drug addictions as sharing neurobiological mechanisms with substance abuse and dependence, where it is thought that drugs of abuse essentially "hijack" neural circuits that underline encoding of natural rewards and plasticity in the brain's circuitry.

C. Results

1. Similarities have been found between nondrug and drug addictions including craving, impaired control over the behavior, increased tolerance (i.e., "more" of whatever results from the behavior is needed to get the same "high), withdrawal, and high rates of relapse.

2. The authors concluded that our "overstimulated society," with rapid advances in technology and readily available stimuli, exacerbates the need to alter one's state of feelings. Escaping, soothing, numbing, releasing tension, lessening anxiety, or producing euphoric feelings are all altered states of mind.

III. Third study

Van Niekerk, J.P. de V. (2011). Addiction. South African Medical Journal 101(10), pp. 673-

A. Introduction

1. Clinicians have generally used "addiction" to mean "continued involvement and dependence on drugs, including alcohol and tobacco." Addiction now includes abnormal dependency on…