Research paper
Lennerz BS, Alsop DC, Holsen LM, Stern E, Rojas R, Ebbeling CB, Goldstein JM, Ludwig DS. Effects of dietary glycemic index on brain regions related to reward and craving in men. Am J Clin Nutr. 2013 Sep;98(3):641-647. doi:10.3945/ajcn.113.064113
Why we cite it
Provides direct human neuroimaging evidence that a high-glycemic-index meal, compared with a calorie- and macronutrient-matched low-GI meal, produces lower blood glucose and greater hunger in the late postprandial period (~4 hours) while simultaneously heightening activity in the nucleus accumbens, a reward/craving region. This uniquely supports the mechanistic link between blood-sugar swings and craving that companion 331 describes; the older Ludwig 1999 study (cgl07) documented the glucose crash, hunger, and subsequent overeating but did not image the brain.