4 Signs Of Fast Food Addiction, Are Your Kids Addicted Too?

Is fast food addictive? Yes, it is addictive. Do your children enjoy your Happy Meal? Well if they do, you'd better be worried. Scientists claim that that Hamburgers and French fries can be as addictive as heroin. Researchers in the US have found evidence to suggest people can become overly dependent on the sugar and fat in fast food.

Sugar is addictive in all ways; it triggers reactions in our bodies that make us feel very 'high' due to the insulin spike in our body. Combined with the fats which you get from fast food, they form the perfect combination that is almost as addictive as heroin. Bart G. Hoebel, a neuroscientist from Princeton University led a similar study into sugar addiction, which was published in the journal Obesity Research in June 2002. Rats were used and were gradually fed a diet with increasing amounts of sugar. The more sugar given, the quicker the rats ate it and when it was suddenly withdrawn from their food, they experienced "addiction-type" reactions, such as chattering teeth, anxiety and shaking.

Without Fast Food When you start feeling weak and shaky after a few days without fast food, it will signify the start of your fast food addiction. Very soon, you'll start to think that the universal solution for all your problems is a Bic Mac. Evidence: Researchers who have been studying the biological effects of fast foods are discovering that they can trigger hormonal changes in the body which can make it difficult to control eating. Fast food meals deliver nearly the recommended daily calorie and fat intake in one meal. As people put on weight, they become more resistant to the hormone leptin, which is strongly linked to weight and appetite, and a brain peptide called galanin that stimulates eating.

Ah, the wonderful Happy Meal which brings smiles to the millions of children. Ever wondered why Happy Meals and other fast food in general never fail to bring a smile to your child's face? That's because fast food can stimulate as much pleasure as heroin can! Ann Kelley, a neuroscientist at the University of Wisconsin Medical School, the behavior of rats after the were given sweet, salty and fatty foods. She found a link between the brain's pleasure chemicals and a craving for this type of food. She stimulated the rats' brains with a synthetic version of the natural opioid enkephalin. This caused rats to eat up to six times their normal intake of fat. In addition, Dr Kelley identified long-lasting changes in rats' brain chemistry - similar to those caused by extended use of morphine or heroin.

 Eating fast food once a day is already bad enough, and if you're eating two fast meals a day or you find yourself craving for the second meal, think again. This is another tell-tale sign of addiction. Dr Jeane Randolph, from the University of Toronto said that fast food causes blood sugar to peak and then plunge, creating a natural desire for another snack to achieve the same effect.