Most nutrition books claim to have discovered the solution to all our health problems, suggesting all we have to do is follow the plan outlined within. Others, like The Hungry Brain by Dr. Stephan Guyenet, take a different approach, actually explaining WHY changing our dietary habits is so damn difficult. We all want to be healthy, so why is it so hard to change our behaviour?
Dr. Guyenet is an obesity researcher and writer who combines neuroscience, physiology, evolutionary biology, and nutrition in his writing. His book discusses how our brain [subconsciously] sabotages our intentions to live a healthy lifestyle. The author explores the question:
Why does our behaviour betray our own intentions to be healthy?
We generally know what a healthy diet looks like. We know we should do things like eat lots of fruits and veggies, eat less highly processed foods, and so on…so if we know these things, why is it so hard to execute??
Why Does This Topic Matter?
It’s clear that there is a mismatch somewhere between our collective food culture and our overall health status. We see that obesity rates have risen from 1 in 7 adults in 1960 to 42.4% of US adults in 2018.
Considering the speed at which rates of obesity have risen, it’s most likely something outside of ourselves and our biology is the main antagonist here. Something like the food environment, including the types of food advertisement we’re bombarded with, the types of food we have access to, and so on.
Though as we’ll see, our brain also sits at the centre of our vulnurability to overconsumption in our current food environment.
Enter: The Hungry Brain
The book reviews research on how the brain influences things like obesity, which it mostly does subconsciously. The author, Guyenet, also explains how the brain operated in our closest ancestors, how it currently operates in hunter-gatherer populations, and compares that to how it the brain is completely overwhelm in our current, more industrialized environment.
The book Thinking Fast, and Slow by Daniel Kahneman is referenced. In Kahneman’s book, he discusses how the brain processes information, explaining that the brain is essentially divided into two parts. We have a conscious brain (where we think and rationalize) and an unconscious brain (where our brain processes information before we even realize it).
If we look at nutrition through the lens of this two-part brain and consider how it functions in our current food environment, we find some cool stuff.
Our Ancestors Didn’t Have Grocery Stores
Our brains (and our genetics) are basically the same as they were in our closest ancestors. We have been wired, through evolution, to value high-calorie foods. At the time, this was an asset because food was more difficult to come by. If you were lucky enough to come across say, a beehive or an antelope, you would chow down, buffet-style, everything you could because there was no guarantee of a next meal.
Even though our environment changed so substantially, our brain still operates the same way. It’s constantly scanning the environment, seeking out calories with a hankering for survival from famine and starvation. The difference is that in todays environment, this is no longer considered an asset, more like a liability. Given that we have constant access to high-calorie foods, our brains are awe-struck.
As our environment changed and calories became readily available (most often in the form of ultraprocessed foods), we didn’t develop an adequate off switch that could tell us we’ve had enough. Instead, we want more and more. For example, consider a fancy coffee drink from your local barista. Think those loaded with syrups, whipped cream, and colourful toppings. They can range from 200-400 calories. What is it that drives us to these things?
It’s not usually hunger. We can easily drink one immediately after a large meal. If we decide to have one AS a meal, it doesn’t leave us feeling full because, although they’re loaded with calories, they are low in nutrients that make us feel full and satisfied, like protein and fibre. (though caffeine can blunt hunger for a little while)
A lot of todays ultraprocesssed foods are like this.
The Evolutionary Mismatch
After realizing the high calorie content of foods like these, our brain learns the textures, colours, scents, and tastes. Though you’re not necessarily craving a food because you think it tastes good, its often because your brain has put a high value on it simply because it’s loaded with energy (calories).
In fact, the easiest foods to overeat are those with both fats and carbs. Food high in both fats and carbs is actually very rare in the natural world. Our brains places so much value on it that we can often eat it even if we’re not hungry, even if we don’t need the energy.
Our brain isn’t designed to live in an environment where high-energy food is so readily available. This has resulted in a perfect example of an evolutionary mismatch. Meaning, our biology has not caught up to the rapid change in our environment. So consider this the next time you’re talking down to yourself about your perceived lack of willpower.
It’s not a personal failure to have excess weight. Nor is it a measure of your character. It’s an expected outcome of living in our current environment.
TweetHow to Tame a Hungry Brain
The good news is, we do have some control over our immediate environment. Though the extent to which we have control will differ from person to person and from family to family, depending on where they live and what types of access to food they have. Differences in food access are influenced heavily by the social determinants of health, including income, gender, education, childhood experiences, culture, and race. You can learn more about the social determinants of health here.
Essentially, we want to nudge our unconscious brain toward wanting the same goal as our conscious brain. To do this, we must make sure our living environment helps us manifest our goals. As often as possible, we want the healthier option to be our default choice. Because there is a tug-o-war happening between our unconscious and conscious minds, we want to make the healthier option as easy as possible.
Aligning the motivations of both parts of our brain is essential to long term success.
3 Ways to Start Doing This Right Now
Does your environment align with your goals?
As Dr. Guyenet says, “a healthy food environment is one that effortlessly guides your eating behaviours in the right direction”.
Ask yourself, if eating healthy were easy, what would it look like for me?
Some ideas include declutering your kitchen and get rid of tempting foods. If a tempting food is visible, you’re more likely to grab it and thus, eat it. If there is some kind of barrier between that food and you eating it, you’re less likely. Think: instead of leaving chips on the counter (easy to grab), store them out of sight, either in a top cupboard or even in the garage.
Move your body more
Anything you can do to move more throughout the day is good! It doesn’t have to be a specific training regimen or super heavy bodybuilder style workouts for you to reep the health benefits of movement. Even walking more leads to improved health outomes!
The Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology has developed 24-Hour Movement Guidelines. They outline how much time should be dedicated to movement, sleep, and sedentary behaviour per day.
Following these guidelines has been associated with:
| A low risk of | Improvements in |
|---|---|
| Cardiovascular disease | Bone health |
| High blood pressure | Cognition |
| Type 2 diabetes | Quality of life |
| Anxiety | Physical function |
| Depression | |
| Weight gain |
The guidelines differ slightly by age, you can find them here: 24-Hour Movement Guidelines.
Sleep more
It’s been found that when sleep-deprived (getting less than 7-9 hrs), we’re more likely to overeat (~300 extra calories per day). Not getting enough sleep can actually increase our brains response to food, in turn making it even harder to “will” ourselves toward a healthy lifestyle.
Spend more time in bed. Leave your phone and laptop in another room. Rest.
Examine.com has ten tips for better sleep, including an explanation of the negative effects of light, noise, heat, alcohol, and caffeine. You can find that here.
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