Food craving
[13][failed verification] Foods that are easily digestible, deep in richness, and have distinct sweetness and saltiness are referred to as 'hyperpalatable'.
These hyperpalatable foods affect the neurons in the nucleus accumbens, the human reward system, causing them to become very active, increasing the levels of pleasure.
Physiologically, it is connected with several mechanisms that motivates food seeking and prepares the body for digestion such as increased salivary flow [18][19] along with activating reward-related brain areas such as the striatum.
Chocolate for example, contains the neurotransmitter phenylethylamine, which is important for the regulation of the body’s release of endorphins and is responsible for the state of mood and pleasure.
[25] Active ingredients in chocolate, known as methylxanthines (such as caffeine, theophylline, and theobromine), has been researched in relation to perimenstrual craving aetiology.
It has been hypothesized that women crave chocolate since methylxanthines has been shown to have the ability to alleviate physical - and perhaps psychological - symptoms associated with menstruation, such as fatigue, irritability, bloating, or cramps.
[26] It seems intuitive to assume that the emergence of a food craving might indicate that the body is low in a specific nutrient, vitamin, or mineral.
[30] Similar interpretations have been derived from perimenstrual (chocolate) cravings which, for example, do not disappear after menopause, making hormonal mechanisms unlikely.
[41] Chocolate is often consumed for presumed dietary deficiencies (e.g., magnesium) or to balance possibly low levels of neurotransmitters involved in the regulation of mood, food intake, and compulsive behaviours (e.g., serotonin and dopamine).
[26] Chocolate contains methylxanthines, biogenic amines, and cannabinoid-like fatty acids, all of which potentially cause abnormal behaviours and psychological sensations that parallel those of other addictive substances.
[26] Ambivalence (e.g., “nice but naughty”) about foods such as chocolate arises from the attitude that it is highly palatable but should be eaten with restraint.
This, together with a need to provide a reason for why resisting eating chocolate is difficult and sometimes fails, can, in turn, lead the individual to an explanation in terms of addiction (e.g., “chocoholism”).
[43] Behavioral techniques, particularly cognitive bias modification and imaginal retraining, have demonstrated some efficacy in decreasing food craving.
[44] Intense food cravings can disrupt healthy eating and lead to obesity and related health problems.
Aside from physical health matters, food cravings can disrupt social life, and lead to problems with employment and family.
