If, at most, half of the way we eat comes from our family genes, the other big factor is environmental, says Pérusse. Overweight friends can serve as “permission givers” to overeat, according to research in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Youths aged nine to 15 were left in a room with food, and told they could eat as much as they wanted. Friends ate more together than non-friends, regardless of their weights. Who ate the most? Overweight kids with other overweight kids, even if they didn’t know each other. This is in keeping with other research showing adults eat more among friends and family than strangers. The good news is that social interactions can also help people lose weight. A recent study in the Journal of Consumer Research concluded that Weight Watchers’ weekly group meetings are “spiritual and therapeutic.”
There is a growing appreciation for just how hard it is not to overeat, says Davis. She and a colleague published a review of the science on compulsive overeating in the May issue of the journal Appetite, and recommended it be considered an addiction disorder similar to substance dependence. She says there is “compelling” evidence in animals that sugar is addictive, and that “it works on our brain in a very similar way that the opiates do, like heroin or morphine.” Basically, our reward pathways are activated, and that gives us a boost, which is pleasurable.
The push to see compulsive overeating recognized as an addiction is gaining speed. In 2008 there were 15 academic papers on the topic compared to just six between 1950 and 1970, Davis noted in her study. It’s likely that skyrocketing obesity rates have partly fuelled the need to take overeating more seriously. “If it’s not a disorder, then it doesn’t have to be treated,” says Davis. “But I think most would agree that compulsive eating, because of its high correlation with obesity, is not a desirable state.”
Kessler says that individuals need to make private rules—for him, it’s no french fries. But he acknowledges that restricting ourselves too much can backfire. “The power of food comes not just from the taste but from the anticipation.” Temptation, it seems, is sweet.
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