Hardwired
In 2001 the surgeon general warned that obesity was the second largest cause of preventable death in the United States, quickly moving to overtake the leading cause, smoking (WWW1). Approximately one third of Americans are considered clinically obese (Clark & Grunstein). None of this is new information, movies like "Super Size Me" have shed light on the national epidemic and we are bombarded with messages about how to eat right by the media. Yet fast food still flourishes and obesity is on the rise. People for the most part understand that fast food is not healthy, yet they are still driven to consume it even when it is obviously killing them. What are the underpinning biological mechanisms that make fast food so attractive? This paper will analyze the neurological systems built to reward the body for survival adaptive behavior, specifically the endogenous opioid system and its neural physiology. Secondly, I aim to use a neuro-chemical lens to discover that good taste......
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Approximate Word Count: 3363
Approximate Pages: 13 (260 words per double-spaced page) |