Want to crave healthier food? The answer is easier -- and harder -- than you think.
Researchers at Tuffs University found that people began to crave healthy food when they consumed healthy food over time.
13 overweight participants were split into two groups. Both groups underwent fMRI scans on their brains before the experiment began. They were exposed to different foods to understand how their brains reacted.
Over the next six months, the experimental group underwent support sessions and behavioral therapy. The experimental group was asked to follow a high-protein, high-fiber diet where they cut 500 to 1,000 calories from their diet daily.
At the end of the six months, the experimental group was compared to the control group, and they had lost an average of 14 pounds. (The control group had lost an average of five pounds.)
Researchers then conducted new fMRI scans, during which they exposed both groups to healthy foods (like turkey sandwiches on wheat bread) and unhealthy foods (like french fries).
They monitored reactions from the portion of the brain associated with reward, the striatum.
Participants in the experimental group now showed more reaction to healthy foods in the striatum and less reaction to unhealthy foods.
Scientists are encouraged by the brain's adaptation to the healthy foods and the use of behavioral therapy in overweight patients.
