Overeating

To say that overeating is a bit of a problem in North America would be like saying Jimmy Hendrix played a little guitar. Dr David Kessler (MD) explores the world of food addiction, food companies' secrets, and how to break free of the vices that compel us to eat.

Kessler uses sound research, interviews, as well as personal and professional experience to create a convincing and riveting account of why we crave certain foods. He takes us through the biology and psychology of overeating - exploring the circuitry that compels us to eat too much of the wrong foods.

Gout, a disease often associated with rich men and rich foods, is making a comeback. As the American population becomes older and heavier, instances of the disease are rising.

Gout is actually a very painful form of arthritis, affecting the big toe and other joints, and is sometimes called "the disease of kings."

A new study published in the journal Obesity Surgery, suggests that very obese individuals have a different physical repsonse to food than that of normal weight individuals.

Most of us are completely baffled as to the reasons for overeating, and so this study proves an interesting read.

The Stress Eater Diet written by Robert Posner, M.D. and Linda Hlivka targets women who tend to eat a lot and unhealthily when stressed.

They believe that 78% of overeating is caused by an emotional response to some type of stressor such as relationship problems or financial difficulties. Along with the help of stress hormones being produced these added calories cause women to gain weight fast.

I'm a little bit out of touch with what's popular on TV - but I do know that crime shows are perennial favorites. We really are fixated with murder and violence.

A curious study has shown that people eat more when they contemplate death.

When some men see women in bikinis or lingerie - they lose their ability to delay gratification: whether it's about food or money.

The research in the Journal of Consumer Research is called "Bikinis Instigate Generalized Impatience in Intertemporal Choice".

From the the lead author: "Prior exposure to sexy stimuli may influence the choice between chocolate cake or fruit for dessert."

Does this scenario look familiar to anyone? After sticking rigidly to my diet for weeks, I "cracked" and scoffed an entire stick of garlic bread with a tub of onion and garlic dip.

At least the vampires kept away that night...

The body and mind react badly to several weeks of "perfect" dieting. Constant low-level hunger makes you crave food, and forbidding anything makes it perversely more desirable. Weeks of deprivation lead to grabbing the nearest high-fat, high-calorie foods and digging in. So, what can you do to break the pattern?

NYC Food blog Blogsoop digs into some of the reasons why we overeat.

Every morning I have the same breakfast. With the exception of a few minor variations I have been eating the same breakfast day in and day out for years.

Some people believe that too much variation can lead to indulgence.

Is this really true?

I rarely eat in food courts (or food halls). These are the communal eating places in shopping malls - where you get to choose your food from a variety of vendors.

When I do eat in a mall I notice I always eat very fast. Maybe it's the noise -- maybe I just want to get out of there. Whatever the reasons - my food hardly "touches the sides" as it were. If I had purchased a large portion - I'm sure the whole thing would go down the hatch before I noticed what I was doing.