Tag: Knowledge recall

Glucose can be used by every cell in your body. Fructose is handled mainly by the liver, which takes 50 to 70% of it on the first pass. Intake has climbed from about 15 grams a day to about 55 over the past century, and at that load the liver’s capacity is overwhelmed, fructose is converted to fat, and fatty liver disease develops — a process that parallels alcoholic liver damage, but from sugar. The liver pays the price for America’s sugar consumption. This companion covers the metabolic difference, what happens in the liver, and practical implications. (4 min read)

Sleep deprivation disrupts three key hormones: ghrelin (hunger) increases by 28%, leptin (satiety) decreases by 18%, and cortisol (stress) elevates. Research by Spiegel and Van Cauter found even a single night of poor sleep produces measurable effects. You’re hungrier, less satisfied by eating, and more likely to store fat — especially around your midsection. Chronic sleep deprivation compounds the damage. This companion covers ghrelin, leptin, cortisol, and the combined effect on weight. (4 min read)

The same reward circuitry that responds to addictive substances responds to hyperpalatable food, and brain imaging finds the parallel with large effect sizes — heightened anticipatory reward alongside reduced inhibitory control. But the strongest evidence for tolerance, withdrawal, and escalation comes from rat studies whose own authors concluded only that this may translate to some human conditions, and the food-addiction model remains scientifically debated: human imaging results largely conflict, no addictive agent in food has been identified, and binge-eating treatments do not match the model’s predictions. None of that makes the experience less real. It reframes it — a strong…

The thermic effect of food is the energy spent digesting and processing what you eat. Protein is highest at 20-30% of the calories consumed — eat 100 calories of protein and 20 to 30 go to processing it. Carbohydrates are 5-10%, fat 0-3%. Two things are easy to blur, though: the overall figure is a share of daily energy expenditure rather than of a given meal, and it is a range that moves with what you eat, roughly 5 to 15%. The bar for “enough” protein also sits lower than the usual advice — 1.2 to 1.6 g per kilogram…

Homeostasis is the body’s drive to maintain stable conditions — including body weight. Research by Leibel and Rosenbaum shows when you diet, the body activates countermeasures: hunger increases, metabolism decreases, food becomes more rewarding. These aren’t willpower failures — they’re biological responses to perceived starvation. The body doesn’t know you’re trying to lose weight; it thinks famine has begun. This companion covers what homeostasis does, the diet response, and working with biology rather than against it. (4 min read)

Body fat is the ultimate survival insurance. Research by Leibel shows the body defends fat vigorously — increasing hunger, decreasing metabolism — because for most of human history, those who held onto fat survived famine and reproduced. Your body responds to weight loss as if starvation has begun. This defense mechanism doesn’t know about grocery stores or desk jobs. Understanding this isn’t fatalism; it’s knowing what you’re working with. This companion covers evolutionary logic, what fat does, and working with biology. (4 min read)

Processing transforms food in ways that reduce nutrition and defeat satiety. Research by Hall at NIH found participants spontaneously ate 500 more calories per day on ultra-processed foods versus whole foods matched for nutrients. Fiber is stripped, structure destroyed, water removed, then sugar-salt-fat added. The result: calorie-dense, nutrient-poor products that don’t fill you up. This companion covers what processing does, the controlled study, and why processed food drives overconsumption. (4 min read)

Calorie density is calories per gram of food. Research by Rolls found low-density foods (vegetables, fruits) fill your stomach and trigger stretch receptors before excessive energy intake, while high-density foods (oils, chips) pack hundreds of calories into small volumes. Your satiety system evolved to regulate volume, not calories. Low-density eating aligns ancient signals with modern needs. This companion covers the numbers, why density matters, the practical application, and volumetric eating. (4 min read)

Hyperpalatable foods combine fat, sugar, and salt in proportions rare in whole foods and ubiquitous in processed ones — engineered to maximize pleasure and consumption. Industry accounts describe food scientists calculating a “bliss point” — the sugar level that maximizes pleasure — and note that fat has no equivalent ceiling, so it can be added without one. Your satiety system evolved for whole foods; it can’t handle these engineered combinations. “Can’t eat just one” isn’t character flaw — it’s the product working as designed. This companion covers what makes food hyperpalatable, the bliss point, and the satiety override. (4 min…

Highly rewarding foods activate the brain’s reward circuitry in patterns resembling those seen with addictive drugs — a blood-oxygen signal rather than dopamine. Research by Gearhardt using fMRI shows palatable foods activating the same brain regions as drugs — in 39 young women, with the key contrast resting on fifteen against eleven. Fazzino quantified hyperpalatable combinations: fat + sugar, fat + salt, carbs + salt. These foods are engineered to maximize pleasure while minimizing satiety. This companion covers the reward system basics, what makes food highly rewarding, the “bliss point,” why reward drives overconsumption, brain imaging evidence, and practical implications.…