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Diet Doctor Podcast · October 17, 2022 · 44m
Your Brain Drives Weight Gain — The Genetic-Environment Mismatch
Dr. Scher explores the neuroscience of obesity — how the brain's reward and satiety systems evolved for food scarcity but now operate in food abundance, creating an evolutionary mismatch that drives overeating.
Canon
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Scher: the hypothalamic-reward circuit that regulates energy balance evolved in environments of food scarcity. In modern food abundance, this system's default setting drives overconsumption. Calling obesity a willpower failure is like calling drowning a swimming failure — the environment overwhelms the system.
Highlights
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The genetic-environment mismatch — our Paleolithic brains in a modern food environment
Scher: human genetics are optimized for periodic feast and famine. The modern food environment — 24/7 availability of hyper-palatable, calorie-dense, engineered food — is the first time in evolution this system has faced unlimited stimulation. The mismatch produces obesity.