I really liked Dr. Carney’s presentation to the Vegetarian Society of Hawaii. She had many interesting facts during her talk. One example: starvation has plagued humanity for eternity. Living in Canada, we are fortunate to have distribution chains that allow people access to food (sadly, this does include food banks due to the problem of food insecurity). However, a large proportion of the available food is unhealthy. Consider the number of aisles in your local grocery store that are taken up with processed foods.
Have you ever wondered why you crave that jelly-filled donut covered with icing in the middle of the afternoon? One source of the craving is your gut microbiome. These are the microorganisms that live in your digestive system. The other source, which Dr. Carney mentioned, is the brain. High-calorie, dense foods can increase endorphins in the brain. These endorphins make you feel better. Endorphins work on the opioid receptor. Drug such as morphine and fentanyl also work on this same receptor! So, please have a healthy snack nearby to satisfy this craving before going for the donut. Thanks for reading! #lifestylemedicine #seniors #olderadults
Photo by Kobby Mendez on Unsplash