Oreos are a popular cookie, and most people have no trouble eating them by the handful if they don't watch themselves, and that may be because they are addictive, according to a new study and reported by CNN.
Students at Connecticut College have presented new research that shows that food can be addictive. The students were trying to determine how the availability of junk food in low-income areas contributes to the obesity epidemic.
"Even though we associate significant health hazards in taking drugs like cocaine and morphine, high-fat, high-sugar foods may present even more of a danger because of their accessibility and affordability," Jamie Honohan, the study designer, said in a statement.
The students used rats in a maze to conduct their study. The rats were given Oreos on one side of the maze, and rice cakes on the other. They then kept track of how much time the rats spent on each side of the maze, and compared the results to a similar study, where the rats had the choice of cocaine or morphine on one side, and a saline solution on the other.
They found the amount of time the rats spent on the side of the maze with the cookies was comparable to the amount of time they spent with the drugs in the previous study.
Researchers also tracked brain activity and found that rats eating Oreos experienced more pleasure than the rats being injected with drugs, which was measured by activation changes in the brain.
"Taken together, these findings support the hypothesis that consumption of high fat/sugar foods can lead to addictive behaviors and can activate the brain in a similar manner as drugs of abuse," Joseph Schroeder, a professor of neuroscience at the college, said.
Scientists have previously found evidence that the brain craves junk food the same way it can crave illegal drugs such as cocaine.
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