Episode 1: Stephan Guyenet, Ph.D. - "The Hungry Brain"- the brain and eating behavior
Dr. Stephan guyenet, Ph.D.
The author of the newest book, "The Hungry Brain," joins us to talk about the connection between the brain and eating behavior. With the book's premise: "No one wants to overeat and develop chronic disease but why is that still happening?" we talk about the research in non-conscious brain circuits that are not serving us in today's highly palatable food environment.
A neuroscientist and biochemist by training, Dr. Guyenet recently wrote a book called “The Hungry Brain” which we talk into in this (first!) podcast. "The Hungry Brain" details the neurochemistry behind why people overeat and the connection between the brain and eating behavior. In our conversation we chat about why and how food behavior doesn’t always line up with food intentions, what he discovered in some of his own and others’ research in non-conscious & impulsive brain circuits, and the mismatch between ancestral eating and our current environment.
Show notes:
4:50 - Dr. Guyenet's interest in science and the brain, his realization into the incompleteness of the information in the brain and eating behavior field, and how he's evolved into his current positions.
7:40 - How he realized he was studying the right organ in examining body fatness and energy homeostasis.
8:20 - Principle behind his new book "The Hungry Brain" and who it's designed for.
13:50 - Mechanisms in appetite regulation- how our stomach registers food, how fullness/satiety is formed.
17:30 - Satiety per calorie - what is it? Is the amount of satiety we feel linked to how many calories we eat? What are satiating and non-satiating foods?
20:40 - Is eating oatmeal versus crackers with equivalent amount of water the same on digestion?
27:45 - Energy depletion and how it shows up on brain scans.
36:00 - What if someone has a negative previous experience with a certain food, how will it show up on a brain (fMRI) scan?
41:20 - If impulses are so innate, how do you help someone make food changes? (strategies to success).
49:10 - Stress response and eating, and what to do about it.